Hooper: Wallabies can hurt Ireland

Australia captain Michael Hooper says the Wallabies will be looking to outpace Six Nations champions Ireland in the opening Test on Saturday.

Ireland are favourites to draw first blood at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, having not tasted defeat since March 2017.

Joe Schmidt’s side defeated France and England away from home to secure their third Grand Slam earlier this year.

Hooper, however, insists the Wallabies – who have debutants Brandon Paenga-Amosa and Caleb Timu in the squad – are capable of hurting Ireland thanks to the likes of Will Genia, Bernard Foley and Kurtley Beale.

“We’d be silly not to run the ball with some of the strike power we’ve got,” Hooper told reporters on Friday after prop Allan Alaalatoa was replaced by Tom Robertson due to an ankle injury.

“We’ve got a really fit team, forwards who want to work and can get over the ad line with a mobile back row.

“We’ve seen through Super Rugby some of the damage that the backs can do and some of the form our playmakers are in.

“We’ve got to be smart with how we do it. This stuff does need a little bit of a tweak and how we relieve pressure in these games because we know the Irish are good, they build pressure.

“We saw what they did to some of the teams in the Six Nations, how they can put up a kick anywhere on the field and just keep putting pressure on – how we deal with that is critical.”

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Hooper added: “It’s great for momentum, it’s great for confidence to know that you can do it and it doesn’t put you up against a decider straight away.

“It would be lovely to win the first one, of course, and try things out. We’re keen to get off to a good start tomorrow and really just do the stuff we talk about and the stuff we say a lot.

“We want to be true to our mantra and how we want to play the game and how we want to be viewed by our fans and that’s playing a good, enjoyable, strong game of rugby.”

Hooper is also excited to see back-rower Pete Samu in action at Suncorp, after the Crusaders star was granted a release by New Zealand Rugby.

Melbourne-born Samu, who has signed for Super Rugby outfit the Brumbies for 2019, left New South Wales for New Zealand in 2014.

Back in Australia’s sights and set to feature against Ireland, Hooper – who trained alongside Samu with the Waratahs in 2013 – said: “You think back and think, ‘how could we have lost him at the time?'”

“I do remember him and you go ‘oh damn!’ when you see him starting and really come through at the Crusaders.