Eddie Jones to drop Carter Gordon for must-win World Cup showdown – report

Coach Eddie Jones has reportedly “lost faith” in young Carter Gordon, with the Wallabies set to go in a new direction ahead of their must-win showdown with Wales at the Rugby World Cup.

With the Wallabies’ chances of progressing past the pool stage now hanging in the balance, Jones’ playmaking experiment with the 22-year-old flyhalf is set to come to an abrupt halt.

Coach Jones has stuck by Gordon during a series of underwhelming performances in the No. 10 jersey, which started with a tough night against the All Blacks at the MCG.

But last weekend’s historic loss to Fiji was a turning point. Gordon was hooked just after the half-time break, and the calls for change from fans got louder and louder.

The time for change, it seems, has come. You could almost see it in Jones’ eyes after the Fiji Test as he began to speak about Ben Donaldson’s impressive showing during the second half at No. 10.

According to Tom Decent and Michael Atkinson, Donaldson will shift to flyhalf while forgotten fullback Andrew Kellaway returns to the starting side.

“Wallabies sources with knowledge of team selection, speaking on the condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak publicly, told this masthead Gordon is to be dropped from the starting XV after his poor performance in Australia’s 22-15 loss to Fiji on Sunday,” the Sydney Morning Herald report reads.

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“Jones has backed Gordon throughout the year but appears to have lost faith in the young playmaker before a match Australia cannot afford to lose if they want to make the quarter-finals.

“Donaldson will shift from fullback to wear the Wallabies’ No. 15 jersey… Gordon could be named on the Wallabies bench given the side needs a back-up playmaker.”