Matt is a true professional and his impact on the team dynamic has been immediate.
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The Wallabies starting backline will have plenty to talk about in their down time, given that over half of them are set to play in France after the World Cup with Quade Cooper and Will Genia bound for Toulon and Stade Francais respectively.
The 32-year-old Toulon star’s 93rd appearance for the Wallabies will be from inside centre just months after the Australian Rugby Union watered down its policy on selecting overseas-based players.
With the World Cup on the horizon, this year’s Rugby Championship takes on a shortened format to give the four competing countries extra time to prepare for the upcoming tournament in England.
Cooper and Giteau are likely to alternate as first receiver with the latter offering more assured game management to complement the Queensland flyhalf’s attacking threat.
“He’s unlocked the drive that I had as a kid but really it has come out in the last couple of years”, Skelton said of Cheika in Brisbane on Wednesday.
Genia and Cooper, who is coming off a shoulder injury, were preferred to Nick Phipps and Bernard Foley at Nos.
“There’s no gambling here”, Cheika said.
“To be out of the Wallabies environment for two years and return a better a player shows his character”.
Springboks coach Heyneke Meyer said of Kriel: “Jessie has a major opportunity to stake a claim for the position and make it his own”.
They would have no doubt appreciated Duane Vermeulen being available, but they still present a formidable forward pack without weakness. “Injuries are mentally very hard to overcome”, the 27-year-old said. “Any player that steps into the fold to play in that jersey, I’ll be believing in 100 percent”. For this match though, we chose to go with this specific loose trio. We’ll see when we get out there and play.
“Our basics have to be spot on and it will also be a great test for our defensive systems against a Wallaby side that can rip any team to shreds with the ball in hand”.
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South Africa: Willie le Roux; JP Pietersen, Jesse Kriel, Damian de Allende, Bryan Habana; Handré Pollard (Vodacom Bulls), Ruan Pienaar; Tendai Mtawarira, Bismarck du Plessis, Jannie du Plessis, Eben Etzebeth, Victor Matfield (captain), Francois Louw, Marcell Coetzee, Schalk Burger. Replacements: 16-Adriaan Strauss, 17-Heinke van der Merwe, 18-Frans Malherbe, 19-Lood de Jager, 20-Oupa Mohoje, 21-Cobus Reinach, 22-Pat Lambie, 23-Lwazi Mvovo.
