Preview: Australia vs Scotland

Can Australia win the World Cup for an unprecedented third time? No country has done so yet, but we have Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa all through to the quarter-finals and aiming to achieve that unparalleled triumph in RWC 2015. The form team through the pool stage has been Australia, marching through the ‘pool of death’ with honour, and they play what may be the easiest quarter-final game.

Heavy betting odds are on the Wallabies to win and to advance without fuss to a semi-final. Scotland have the controversial suspensions of Jonny Gray and Ross Ford (by an inconsistent, over-zealous RWC disciplinary process) to overcome, and if they are to have any chance of an upset win, they will need to start a lot more assertively and less tentatively, attack with more skill and greater conviction, and maintain tight defence consistently through the 80 minutes. Their big test in the pool games was against South Africa; they were found wanting and were well beaten. Do they have what it takes to beat this highly competent Wallaby team, deservedly confident after their impressive wins over England and Wales?

Australia’s improved scrummaging has been a revelation, the effectiveness of their loose-forwards a feature of the tournament, their physical intensity ferocious, their defence tight – even with 13 men playing 15 – and establishing their first-choice 9 and 10 has been a major boost to the team. They have form and momentum, play with skill and obvious desire and an astute game-plan. Even without their injured superstars, David Pocock and Israel Folau, it would come as a major surprise if the Wallabies were not to advance to a semi-final against Ireland or Argentina.

Key players:

For Australia, Bernard Foley and Will Genia at 10 and 9, Ben McCalman at 8 in place of Pocock, flanks Michael Hooper, and Scott Fardy, and the wisdom and experience in the backline of Matt Giteau, Drew Mitchell, and Adam Ashley-Cooper. For Scotland, Fraser Brown and Tim Swinson, standing in for Ford and Gray, openside John Hardie, their superbly talented young 10, Finn Russell, and fullback Stuart Hogg.

The big match-ups:

At breakdown, Hardie vs Hooper. Hookers Brown and Stephen Moore – as scrummagers and for accurate lineouts. Scott Sio vs WP Nel as scrummagers. Ashley-Cooper vs Tommy Seymour. And at 9, Genia vs Greig Laidlaw.