Two of Australia’s most influential players believe the Wallabies will bounce back strongly from their first Test defeat against England this Saturday and extend the best-of-three series into a deciding third game next week.
Michael Hooper and Israel Folau, both try-scorers in the first Test in Brisbane, still feel they have the beating of their opponents despite their initial 39-28 loss at Suncorp Stadium.
The pair were both involved in the Wallabies’ World Cup pool win over England at Twickenham last October and insist last weekend’s outcome was primarily down to the hosts’ own mistakes.
“Their ability to expose our weaknesses was good but I wouldn’t say they threw anything at us that blew us away,” stressed Hooper. “For us it’s just about being able to control our stuff better. The pressure’s on us but we’re excited about having another opportunity to roll with these guys. We can give so much more.”
The 24-year-old Hooper will take his place in a reshuffled Australian pack containing four changes, including the inclusion of the pacy Sean McMahon at No8 in place of the injured David Pocock.
The Wallabies are clearly keen to stretch England whenever possible, as they did successfully in the opening quarter of the first Test, but also recognise the importance of matching the visitors physically.
“It’s war, we’ve been put under the pump,” acknowledged Hooper, promising his side will seek to make “big hits more often” on Saturday. “England played a good game last week and got on top of us. We need to get it done.”
The outstanding Folau is also adamant Australia will come out fighting. “We want to try and square up the series,” he said. “There’s no other option but to give it our all at the weekend. The last thing we want to do is go into our shells.”
The Wallaby camp, meanwhile, insist the pitch at AAMI Park is fine despite recent instances of the surface cutting up in Super Rugby. Drier weather this week has helped to alleviate the situation and Hooper said the Wallabies have encountered no issues during training.
“It looks fantastic and it was solid under foot,” he reported. “It’s going to be awesome playing there.”
