No time for fringe dwellers as Wallabies go all out

Sidelined for over a month after hurting his knee in the second Bledisloe Cup loss against New Zealand, O’Connor has been rushed back in to start against Argentina at Bankwest Stadium on Saturday.

The evergreen Queenslander had been the standout No. 10 this season and the Wallabies have struggled in his absence, trying both Noah Lolesio and Hodge at five-eighth with mixed success.

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Australia’s most versatile back, Hodge had been unable to secure a spot in the starting line-up until he was given his surprise chance at five-eighth and did such an admirable job that Dave Rennie has given him a second chance at fullback against the Pumas.

The Wallabies have no real hope of claiming the Tri-Nations title because they need to beat the Pumas by over 100 points to overtake the All Blacks at the top of the table.

That may have tempted Rennie to give some of his fringe players a bit of game time but his decision to choose his strongest line-up is an ominous statement of intent.

“We’re taking this as a must-win game,” O’Connor said.

“It’s very important for our campaign and moving forward as a group.

“It’s not just finishing the year this way, it’s almost spring-boarding us.”

One of the oldest players in the side, O’Connor knows only too well what can happen when another player fills your position, which is why the 30-year-old was so keen to come back at the first opportunity he had.

“You never want to give someone an opportunity in your spot,” he said.

“That’s why I pushed to rush back the week earlier with my injury.

“In saying that, I have huge trust in whatever’s meant to happen will happen as long as I do what’s correct for myself. He (Hodge) has done a really good job, but I’d still like to put my hand up and get that jersey back.”

The Wallabies will confirm their full team on Thursday, around the same time as the Pumas, who are expected to be without their skipper, Pablo Matera, as well as Guido Petti and Santiago Socino.

All three have been suspended because of comments they posted on Twitter in 2011 and 2013.

The Wallabies haven’t won their last game of the year since 2013 and rising Queensland loose forward Fraser McReight said they were determined to end that streak to kick start their preparation for the 2023 World Cup.

“To end on a positive note going into 2021, 2022 and the World Cup cycle, it would mean the world for the Wallabies,” McReight said.

“What’s really important about this group is that before the Tests started there were 16 players who hadn’t played yet and now we’ve had I think eight to 10 debutants in a year.

“Obviously, the coaching group have a special mindset going into the World Cup cycle and we’re four years away from what we want to do so there‘s a lot of building, a lot of progressing towards that goal.”

Meanwhile, Australia’s Test schedule for 2021 is slowly coming together with Scotland announcing the Wallabies will play at Murrayfield on the Spring Tour next November.

The Wallabies will play at least four matches on their end of season trip to the northern hemisphere after hosting France in three matches mid-year and playing a full Rugby Championship with South Africa back in after skipping this year.