Wallabies face off in pre-Bledisloe trial match

The Wallabies squad will square off mate-against-mate next Friday night at Leichhardt Oval in Sydney, as preparations ramp up ahead of the Bledisloe Cup opener.

 
The full-contact trial will be a break from recent tradition for the Wallabies with the competition heating up for a berth in Michael Cheika’s side for the Bledisloe Cup clash against New Zealand at ANZ Stadium on Saturday 18 August.

Wallabies coach Michael Cheika said: “We were keen to have more Super Rugby teams playing for longer, obviously, and if we look at the last two years we just want to keep the intensity of footy up.
 
“Spending five weeks on the sideline before a Bledisloe Test match is not what we want ideally. We want guys to play footy.
 
“It’s not just about the contact, because you can get all that in training. But just the little things. The pressure in front of a crowd, the referee telling you what to do, the dressing room build up, all those things. The mental side of footy,” Cheika said.
 

Michael Cheika and his Wallabies staff will name a side to take on a Austranlian Super Rugby Selection that will be coached by Australian Women’s Sevens coach John Manenti and assisted by Australian Men’s coach Tim Walsh and Melbourne Rebels assistant Kevin Foote.
 
The trial will not incorporate the use of a Television Match Official (TMO) with Rugby Australia still contemplating other rule initiatives.

Currently, squad members of the NSW Waratahs will not be considered for selection