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Kerevi in, Cooper out for Wallabies clash against All Blacks

By Alex McLeod
Wallabies centre Samu Kerevi. Photo / Getty Images

The Wallabies will welcome the return of Samu Kerevi following a two-year absence from the team after he was named to start against the All Blacks in Perth on Sunday.

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Kerevi hasn’t played for the Wallabies since he departed for Japan to join Suntory Sungoliath after the 2019 World Cup, but the 27-year-old has been included in Dave Rennie’s current squad following a relaxation of the Giteau Law.

As a result, despite having played only 33 tests and spending just six years of professional rugby in Australia, Kerevi has returned to the starting lineup for the Wallabies, as he has been named at No 12 to take on the All Blacks at Optus Stadium.

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Beauden Barrett focused on taking his All Blacks opportunity in the absence of Richie Mo’unga

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Beauden Barrett focused on taking his All Blacks opportunity in the absence of Richie Mo’unga

By replacing Matt To’omua at second-five, Kerevi represents one of nine changes to the match day squad, but none of them involve the re-call of veteran playmaker Quade Cooper.

Plenty of speculation had centred on whether Cooper, who played the last of his 70 tests against Italy four years ago, would be called on by Rennie to face the All Blacks this week.

That move hasn’t come to fruition, though, as Noah Lolesio has been entrusted to keep the No 10 jersey for another test, while utility back Reece Hodge will provide cover from the bench.

With injured pivot James O’Connor set to link back up with the squad in Queensland next week, Cooper’s time in the Australian camp may have now come to an end without the 33-year-old taking to the field.

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The presence of Kerevi in the starting XV should help bring confidence to the Wallabies as they look to deny the All Blacks a Bledisloe Cup clean sweep and register their first victory of the Rugby Championship.

Kerevi isn’t the only new player in the run-on squad, as Rennie has opted for a change of hooker with Folau Fainga’a coming into the No 2 jersey in place of Brandon Paenga-Amosa, who has been dropped from the match day side entirely.

The alteration comes after the Wallabies looked faulty at the set piece in their last outing, a 57-22 thumping at the hands of the All Blacks at Eden Park in Auckland last month.

In the midfield, meanwhile, inexperienced centre Len Ikitau will partner with Kerevi for the first time in his four-test career.

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On the bench, Hodge will be accompanied by five new faces, including lock Izack Rodda, who will play in his first test since the 2019 World Cup.

Rodda made headlines last year when he was one of three Queensland Reds players who departed Australia after failing to reach an agreement to pay cuts spurred on by the financial impact of Covid-19.

However, the 25-year-old will return to Super Rugby Pacific next year after signing with the Western Force from Lyon.

It means Rodda will have the chance to add to his 25 test caps in front of his future home crowd at Optus Stadium, which has sold-out with more than 60,000 fans expected at this weekend’s clash.

The other new names on the bench include hooker Lachlan Lonergan, loosehead prop Angus Bell, loose forward Pete Samu and utility back Jordan Petaia.

Wallabies team to play the All Blacks

1. James Slipper
2. Folau Fainga’a
3. Allan Alaalatoa
4. Darcy Swain
5. Matt Philip
6. Lachlan Swinton
7. Michael Hooper (c)
8. Rob Valentini
9. Tate McDermott
10. Noah Lolesio
11. Marika Koroibete
12. Samu Kerevi
13. Len Ikitau
14. Andrew Kellaway
15. Tom Banks

Reserves:

16. Lachlan Lonergan
17. Angus Bell
18. Taniela Tupou
19. Lukhan Salakaia-Loto
20. Pete Samu
21. Nic White
22. Reece Hodge
23. Jordan Petaia

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J
Jon 6 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 8 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

34 Go to comments
A
Adrian 10 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

34 Go to comments
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