The two players that could be Les Kiss’s silver bullet

The Wallabies have shown glimpses of physical dominance, attacking brilliance, and defensive pressure in 2026, but are yet to string together an 80-minute performance.

It is now clear that while coach Les Kiss has been chopping and changing the side in a bid to build genuine competition and depth in the squad, you can’t rush an exercise which takes time: time which the Wallabies don’t have.

In the wake of the Wallabies walloping in Sydney at the hands of the All Blacks, Kiss was asked about the clock ticking until the home Rugby World Cup in 2027.

“The time we have is the time that we have,” Kiss said.

“I believe in these guys deeply about what is possible.

“I’ve always said we’ll have our ups and downs and today was a bit of a downer again, but there are some good clues from what we’re trying to do in our game.

“When we do play with a footy in hand, with a positive intent, we’re making a lot of breaks against one of the best teams in the world.”

Kiss is right, the Wallabies, despite their shellacking, made 17 linebreaks against the All Blacks, one more than the Kiwis, and beat one less defender with 31.

Had the Wallabies converted just a few of these, the scoreline would’ve looked very different, but they lacked the patience, experience, and execution to nail their many opportunities.

A less impressive stat is the post-contact meterage from both sides.

The Wallabies only managed 0.9m on average per carry, and the All Blacks only 0.7m on average per carry.

This stat evidently doesn’t correlate with the amount of linebreaks or defenders beaten, but it shows the Wallabies lacked punch in their carriers.

This is where Kiss and the Wallabies have genuinely world-leading options to call on in the months ahead, all the way up until the World Cup.

Samu Kerevi and Langi Gleeson are two players who not only dominate contact but are players who get you over the gainline.

The Wallaby way currently is an attacking game built on short bursts of intense power.

That’s the type of players Kiss has at his disposal; that’s the type of players Kiss has selected, and so he should pick players to further that blueprint.

Long passages of play is not what this Wallabies side thrives off, no matter what people say is the “Wallaby way”.

The current Wallabies DNA is built on Pasifika power, set piece grunt, and X-factor strike abilities that can score in an instant from anywhere.

Kerevi and Gleeson give you all of the above in spades.

So far this year, the Wallabies have averaged around 2.3m post contact per carry, well short of South Africa at 3.2m and the All Blacks’ 2.8m during the Greatest Rivalry tour.

The gold international standard for this stat is in that 3m-4m range, and only South Africa attains that regularly at present.

Kiss knows this, his motto of “go forward” has been echoed by his assistant Jonathan Fisher on several occasions, and it’s evident in the way the Wallabies play their games.

Gleeson is firmly in Kiss’s sights, he has named him on the ‘unavailable list’ under each of his four squad announcements, this is not a mistake, this is a clear statement of intent regarding selections.

Kiss knows Gleeson’s numbers, and they are very impressive. 

Let’s compare Gleeson’s numbers with those of the current Wallabies squad.

Only two Wallabies players got over 66% gainline on average in Super Rugby Pacific in 2026, and that’s Rob Valetini and Josh Canham, who got 67% and 66% respectively.

After this, locks Lukhan Salakaia-Loto and Jeremy Williams secured 62% and 63%, respectively.

Fraser McReight managed a hefty 66%, but he carried a lot wider than the others, and finally captain Harry Wilson and Tom Hooper managed 58% and 47%, respectively.

In Super Rugby Pacific 2025, the last time Gleeson had a full season, Gleeson outplayed the Wallabies most deadly carry, Valetini, at almost every turn.

Gleeson made 2.4 post-contact metres per carry, two linebreaks, and scored seven tries. He beat 33 defenders, making seven dominant tackles at 90 per cent, making more carries per minute and more tackles per minute than Valetini, as well as winning more turnovers.

Valetini’s numbers weren’t anywhere near Gleeson at: 1.9 post-contact metres per carry, 0 linebreaks, and 1 try. 

He beat 27 defenders and made 4 dominant tackles at an 85 per cent success rate.

Even if you go back and compare Gleeson’s 2025 figures with Valetini’s 2024 figures, the pair are almost identical; this is why he is on that list.

Kiss wants his men to go forward, and Gleeson will help that once fit from a knee injury suffered earlier this year.

The good news on that front is that Montpellier released a rehab update on Gleeson on 10 September, saying that “he is expected to return in about two months.”

Although this may be too late for him to be chosen in the November Nations Championship squad, it will nonetheless mean he will be playing rugby again and be fit by the time the April Bledisloe arrives.

Rugby Australia and Kiss should do all they can to secure Gleeson’s services for that one off Test as it would speed up his integration timeline, and at the very least, Gleeson should come over to the UK to spend some time in camp in November.

Another player who hasn’t made the list, but who offers a world class ball running threat, is Japan-based Kerevi.

If the Wallabies want to go forward, then Kerevi is the guy they should recall from Japan.

Kerevi makes a whopping 4.8 post-contact metres per carry on average.

None of the players in the current squad who play centre make more than 3.4m per carry on average.

That extra 1.4m per carry could be the difference between milking a penalty out of a defensive line, setting up a try-scoring opportunity, or generating a linebreak.

And before anyone says that it doesn’t matter because it’s in Japan League One, the current best centre pairing in the world, the Springboks’ most capped centre pairing of all time, Damien De Allende and Jesse Kriel, made 3.8m and 3.6m post-contact per carry, respectively, in the same competition.

Kerevi is elite in his ability to get through contact.

If you compare him to the best no.12s in the world, he is still unique: Scotland captain Sione Tuipulotu averaged 3m, Ireland’s battering-ram Stuart McCloskey had 3.6m, Andre ‘the Giant’ Esterhuizen had 3.2m; Kerevi trumps them all and then some.

Kerevi is also elite when it comes to beating defenders, beating a defender every 2.1 carries.

In the current Wallabies squad, only Len Ikitau and Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii come close at club level, beating a defender every 2.6 and 2.8 carries.

Tuipulotu, McCloskey, and Esterhuizen are all at a defender beaten every 3.0 runs or above, same with DDA and Kriel.

Finally, only Ikitau and Suaalii, out of all the names mentioned, beat Kerevi for linebreaks made per carry; after that, everyone else is in very, very distant fourth.

Ikitau makes a linebreak every nine carries; Suaalii every 10.5 carries; Kerevi makes one every 11 carries, and just for context, the next best after that is DDA and Isaac Henry, making linebreaks every 16 carries.

Now we have to remember why this is all relevant, the Wallabies are trying to go forward, and while their forwards have been deadly once they have gotten into the opposition’s 22m-zone, the backs haven’t exactly been pulling their weight.

Since Kiss took over the Wallabies, the backs’ post-contact metre work has been poor.

Hunter Paisami has made 2.5m post-contact metres on average per carry, Iktiau 2.6m, Suaalii 1.2m, and Henry 3.2m. Henry’s numbers have been greatly aided by the Japan game in Townsville.

As we can see, the Wallabies’ backs are in dire need of punch, and with the players only generating linebreaks once every dozen carries or so, the Wallabies are in need of some serious help if they are to capitalise on their gameplan.

Kerevi is that type of player at 108kgs and 186cm; he may be 32 years old, but he is younger than both the Boks’ centres, DDA and Kriel.

While Jordan Petaia was the cover all option flown in from Japan, perhaps it’s time to turn to his teammate and mentor at Uraysay D-Rocks in Japan, Kerevi.

The Wallabies are building a strong enough squad with enough variation to have a horses for courses selection approach, and heading into the World Cup, you need that diversity.

Against a side like the Springboks a second pivot at no.12 is vastly helpful but you need a impactful and physically dominant forwards bench, and that’s where a Gleeson comes in.

Gleeson, at 188cm and 112kg, the compact back-rower is also a decent pilferer, and that helps too.

Against the All Blacks, you want to be able to put them backwards and strike quickly, Kerevi at no.12 not only guarantees you gainline ball but it also means that the Wallabies have another momentum generator outside of their pack.

Diversifying a team’s threats means that the defence can’t bunch, and that means spacing is crucial; that sort of spacing is a gold mine for the likes of Kerevi.

Kerevi has so far not been mentioned by Kiss in any official setting, but Kiss watches tape of all overseas players; he and analyst Eoin Toolan will know Kerevi’s prowess. Now is the time to call him in.

Gleeson gives you genuine acceleration and speed as well as devastating ball-carrying ability.

Being able to bring a Gleeson and a Carlo Tizzano or Tom Hooper off the bench not only gives you a one-two punch but genuine size and experience off the bench.

Being able to select Gleeson also offsets the need for Valetini or a captain Harry Wilson to play 80 minutes each week, Gleeson is genuinely that good.

Whether you play him at no.8 or no.6 depends on your horses for course approach, but with his ability to pilfer, there’s nothing stopping his playing him at no.7 should McReight need a rotation or should injury strike.

These are two genuine impact players and difference makers the Wallabies can no longer afford to ignore.

The time for ‘we know what they will bring, so we won’t select them now’ is over, the time for picking the best 34 players world-wide is now.

The Wallabies have a genuine opportunity to go unbeaten for the rest of the year should they select shrewdly and be able to keep key players on the field.