O'Gara crucial as Skelton all but confirms if he'll face All Blacks

Will Skelton has said that “logistically it’s really tough” to return to face the All Blacks in the final two rounds of the Rugby Championship this year.

After having a seismic impact on Australia for the final two Tests of the British & Irish Lions series, and the opening two matches of the Rugby Championship against South Africa, the 135kg lock was called back to his club, La Rochelle, for rounds three and four of the tournament.

While French clubs are not strictly allowed to bar players from playing in the Championship under World Rugby regulations, they are allowed to recall players during rest periods between rounds two and three, and rounds four and five.

Rugby Australia opted not to recall the 33-year-old for their two meetings with Argentina, but reports had emerged that the influential lock could make a return for the Bledisloe Cup, which could in turn decide who comes away winners of this year’s Championship.

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But with La Rochelle facing Toulon just six days before the Wallabies’ first All Blacks meeting at Eden Park, Skelton revealed that he will only be able to link up with the squad midweek.

Joining RugbyPass TV’s Kick Offs and Kick Ons recently, the 36-cap international said that Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt likes players to train on Monday and Tuesday ahead of a Test match, which he will, of course, be unable to do.

However, La Rochelle boss Ronan O’Gara could have the decisive say in the process.

The Irishman opted to rest Skelton for the Top 14 opening round defeat to Investec Champions Cup winners Bordeaux-Begles on Saturday as he is “big on where I’m at physically and mentally.” The former Saracens star said that there is an “ongoing conversation” over his Rugby Championship fate, but O’Gara’s decision to play or rest Skelton against Toulon in round three of the Top 14 could determine whether he will be able to play the All Blacks the week after.

“It’s an ongoing conversation,” he said. “I think with ROG, he’s big on where I’m at physically and mentally. As soon as I came back, we negotiated a rest. So he could have thrown me straight in and played me against Bordeaux at the weekend, but he wanted me to get my body right; we both wanted that. I’ll head into training today as my first day back with the boys.

“Then we have Clermont at home and Toulon next week. The thing is with that, we play Toulon next Sunday, so logistically it’s really tough to get back for that Bledisloe series. You’re getting back on Tuesday, and the game’s not in Australia, it’s in New Zealand.

“[Schmidt] loves guys training Monday and Tuesday, which is fair.”