What a difference a week makes. We played well against Scotland and but for unfortunate injuries late in the week, some illness and an injury early in the game to a position we didn’t have cover on the bench, it could’ve been different.
Scotland are a good team and are 20 points better at Murryfield than 100 yards down the street. An English media personality asked after the game was Australia suffering from a bug or virus as he felt they looked very lethargic. A fair question.
Personally, I liked the St Joe post-match press conference not seeking comfort in any excuses.
Ireland without injured quartet for Australia Test
Jacob Stockdale, Tadhg Furlong, Ryan Baird and Jamie Osborne have been ruled out of Ireland’s final autumn international against Australia on Saturday. Ulster wing Stockdale (hamstring) and Leinster full-back Osborne (abductor) were forced off during Saturday’s win over Fiji.
Speaking about Osborne’s injury, Ireland forwards coach Paul O’Connell said: “He’s a big loss. He’s very versatile on the bench obviously, he covers so many different positions and is growing and getting better all the time. It’s a shame he’s out. Hopefully it’s nothing too serious and he’s back to us soon.”
Leinster lock Ryan Baird was ruled out of the Fiji game with a head injury while prop Tadhg Furlong has missed the entire autumn campaign with a hamstring issue. O’Connell also confirmed that Dave Heffernan (Connacht), Nick Timoney (Ulster) and Jack Boyle (Leinster) have been released back to their clubs before the United Rugby Championship’s return this weekend.
After bouncing back from a defeat by the All Blacks with wins over Argentina and Fiji, Ireland host Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium at 15:10 GMT on Saturday.
There’ll be a degree of unpopularity – Schmidt
Australia boss Joe Schmidt says he does not expect to be “love-bombed” by Ireland fans ahead of his return to Dublin this weekend. Schmidt led Ireland to three Six Nations titles during a six-year spell in charge but will lead the Wallabies into Saturday’s Test against Andy Farrell’s side.
“I know the Aviva pretty well and that will be nice to get back there, albeit in a different changing shed,” the New Zealander said after his side’s 27-13 loss to Scotland on Sunday. “I’m really excited about getting back, I don’t know about being love-bombed. I coached against them a couple of times with the All Blacks and I think I was pretty unpopular there. I’ve swapped sides again and there’ll be a degree of unpopularity.”
Schmidt, who left Ireland after the 2019 World Cup, added: “The way my family and I were looked after in Dublin was fantastic, and right around Ireland. It’s a special place for us. We still have a home there and a daughter, I’m looking forward to catching up with her. It will be a nice week to get back there but there’s only one game in town and that’s about the footy, and trying to help these guys prepare as best they can.”
Speculation on Australia for the weekend
Australia will be forced to make some changes on the weekend with Will Skelton unavailable due to the test falling outside the test window for those who think we should just pick from anywhere. Tane Edmed will also apparently come off the bench. I like this pick as I think he has the clutch gene in him and seems to be a tough bugger.
My team for the weekend:
1 Angus Bell
2 BPA
3 Allan A
4 Nick Frost
5 Jeremy Williams
6 Rob Valetini
7 Fraser McReight
8 Harry Wilson
9 Jake Gordon
10 Noah Loloesio
11 Andrew Kellaway
12 Len Ikitau
13 Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii
14 Harry Potter
15 Tom Banks
16 Billy Pollard, although I prefer Josh Nasser or the other ACT hooker
17 James Slipper, if fit
18 Anyone but Zane Nonggorr (he just isn’t there yet), Thor if he has 20 in his knee
19 LSL
20 Seru Uru can cover 5,6,7,8 (Flippers Gleeson has been poor all tour IMHO)
21 Tane Edmed
22 Tate McDermott
23 Max Jorgensen
Pietsch: I can really grow my game in the Force environment
From Pravda
Wallabies recruit Dylan Pietsch has linked up with the Western Force for pre-season training and says he’s excited about an environment where he believes he can grow his game. Pietsch switched from the NSW Waratahs for the Force in the off-season and arrived in Perth a fortnight ago after his Wallabies Northern Hemisphere Tour was ended prematurely by a calf injury sustained in the famous 42-37 win over England.
While the tour-ending injury was disappointing for the five-cap 26-year-old Wallabies winger, he was philosophical about it, saying “everything happens for a reason”. The situation has allowed him to get a head start on Perth life, linking up with his new teammates and familiarising himself with his new environment.
“I’ve really loved what the Force are building here,” Pietsch told Force TV. “I think I can really grow my game in this environment here, so I’m really excited for it all. When pressed further on why he joined the Force, Pietsch added: “They play a really nice, fast brand of footy. I really feel like that suits my kind of style. I just wanted a change of environment. Having good people around you to work hard together for a common goal. I’m really keen for it. I think I can really grow my game in this environment here, so I’m really excited for it all.”
Pietsch, who hails from Narrandera in the Riverina region of south-western NSW, knows plenty of the Force squad from his time in representative squads and the Tahs, including Carlo Tizzano, Ben Donaldson and Jeremy Williams, which was a big part of the attraction. “I know a fair few of the boys from Australia A and past Waratahs stuff as well,” he said. “That’s helped coming in with a lot of familiar faces. It’s the perfect balance for me, grew up in a small country town and lived in Sydney, so now got a balance of both. I’m really settling in and loving it so far.”
Pietsch has had an interesting journey to this point, moving to Sydney as a teenager to attend The King’s School before spending several years playing rugby sevens, including at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics where he worked with new Force assistant coach James Stannard. The pacey winger made his Super Rugby debut with the Tahs in 2022 and has had three strong campaigns, scoring 14 tries in 38 games.
Pietsch has enjoyed a fantastic 2024 leading to his Australia debut against Wales in July, becoming the 15th known Indigenous Wallaby. The winger showed he was really finding his feet at international level with an impressive showing in the victory over England at Twickenham before injury intervened.
“It’s probably bad timing but everything happens for a reason,” Pietsch said. “It was really good to get that win in England and watch the boys get the win against Wales. It’s been really cool to see the Wallabies boys going really well and progressing. When we versed Wales at the start of the year (compared) to last week, you can see the amount of progression each player is having and the confidence that they’re getting. It’s just a product of a good environment.”
Pietsch has made good progress in his recovery at Force HQ and was involved in sections of full training this week, which bodes well for a quality pre-season ahead of the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific campaign. “Injury is going really well,” he said. “Basically back into everything a lot earlier than expected. The staff here have been so amazing getting me back. They’ve been really cool helping me with some other stuff, so the injury is going really well.”
After a positive start to his recovery, Pietsch will fly out this week to watch the Wallabies take on Ireland in Dublin this Saturday and take his international break before returning to Perth for the next pre-season block.
Pietsch, who is a proud Wiradjuri man, will also spend time on his Indigenous art business, Wulwaay, during his break. He revealed he’d been dabbling in art since he was young, but had decided to turn his passion into a business a few years ago, which has gone from strength to strength but also offered him a release from rugby.
“It’s something I enjoyed doing and I never thought of it as a business idea,” he said. “I spoke to a few people and thought I might as well see how it goes. I’ve been doing that for four years now. I do a lot of designs and canvases. I just did the Wallabies’ British & Irish Lions tour jersey. It’s been a good thing outside of rugby to have. Rugby can be a really tense environment, so to have something that’s so creative, which gets you into that third space outside rugby, you’re not just focusing on throwing a ball, you’re actually being a human being. To be able to connect to culture especially when you’re travelling so much and to be able to do my art is a really good grounding for me when I want to connect back to culture and create a story with my artwork.”
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Bell of the Ball: Nasser reflects as rugby royalty replaces Caslick as Australia Sevens captain
Also from Pravda
The Australia Women’s Sevens side is set to enter a new era with young gun Isabella Nasser to captain the side in Dubai. It comes after superstar Charlotte Caslick stepped down from the role ahead of the new season.
The 22-year-old’s rise has been rapid since she made her debut for the Australian side in South Africa two years ago. Nasser has become an integral part of the squad, helping them to the SVNS title after taking out the grand final. Her appointment is a massive show of faith from coach Tim Walsh as they look to the future.
“It is an honour and privilege to be named captain of the Australian Women Sevens Rugby team,” Nasser said in a statement. “There have been incredible leaders who have gone before me and I only hope to follow in their footsteps and to lead the team to future success. Charlotte is and always will be such an immortal legend of the game and it’s an honour to have her in the team. As a team and program we are evolving and maturing and we are looking forward to performing this season and leading into the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.”
Nasser and Caslick’s path to Sevens glory is nearly identical, both attended Brisbane State High before making their name in the Queensland system. Nasser has referred to Caslick as an idol since her Rio Olympics heroics, with the two taking the field together eight years later in Paris.
“The last few seasons captaining this team has been one of the biggest highlights of my career and a true honour,” Caslick stated. “Moving forward into the new season I’ve decided to step away from this role to allow the girls to grow in this space leading into the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028. I pride myself on always putting the team first and I have always had that expectation on the girls too. I will continue to put my heart and soul into the Aussie Sevens program, this group and the jersey. I’ve watched Bella grow from a high school student at Brisbane State High School to an incredible rugby player, person and leader, and cannot wait to support her any way I can throughout the upcoming season.”
The naming of Nasser as skipper continues the dream rugby year for the family, with brother Josh making his Wallabies debut in July following in the footsteps of dad Brendan. “The program has always been blessed with strong, authentic and pioneering leaders,” coach Tim Walsh added. “Bella is a very impressive young woman possessing huge leadership potential and I am looking forward to working with Bella and the team to further unlock our potential. This squad will get better with age, and the best is yet to come.”
It must suck for her brother Josh being a Wallaby and probably the second best player in the family. Perhaps he and Scott Barrett can sympathise one day over a beer.
Stan show the Sevens so get around it.
Heading photo is of the Roma Echidnas ground, my second favourite ground I visited this year,
Happy out Hoss back tomorrow. Wallabies by who cares.
