infonews.co.nz
INDEX
RUGBY

Wallabies aim for injury-free win

Friday 30 September 2011, 1:33PM

By Rugby World Cup 2011

290 views

NELSON

Injury-riddled Australia need their makeshift line-up to secure a bonus point win against Russia at Trafalgar Park on Saturday, and more importantly, they need it done without new additions to their casualty ward.

A win by the Wallabies should be enough to secure a quarter-final berth while a bonus point win will keep their hopes of finishing top of Pool C alive as they look ahead to the all-decisive clash between Italy and Ireland on Sunday.

However coach Robbie Deans also admitted his team needed to avoid the potential “train smash” that would be a repeat of the dreadful injury toll that emerged from their last match, the 67-5 victory over the USA.

Already boasting a walking wounded squad of only 24 fit players, any further casualties would cripple Australia’s chances of surviving a likely quarter-final showdown with South Africa.

The injury toll has forced Deans to move loose forward Radike Samo to the wing, a position he last played in 1999, and name a lopsided bench where scrum halves Will Genia and Nick Phipps are the only backs replacements.

Deans says he has complete faith that Samo, who stands at 197cm and weighs 117kg, has the ability to compete as a wing on the world’s biggest stage.

Remarkable athlete

"He's a remarkable athlete. He's 35, I understand, and he can still run really fast and he's obviously good in the contact,” he said

"He's got a skill set that will be useful in the wide channels as well as through the middle."

One player who is genuinely excited by the new-look Australian line-up is full back James O’Connor, who wants to make the most of his opportunity to slide in and out of the Australian attack at will.

"I like to get into second receiver as much as possible and I think that's where I provide my biggest threat,” he said.

“I'll be looking and sniffing around that area for sure."

The 21-year-old believes the key to an Australian bonus point victory is to work hard in defence from the outset and then take advantage of space on the fringes as the match wears on.

"The big thing for them is it's their last game so they're going to throw the ball around,” O'Connor said.

"The big thing for us is that we're going to have to cut them down physically early on and dominate that breakdown. It should pay dividends for us out wide and hopefully I can get a bit of pill (ball).”

Historic match

For Russia the match presents a rare opportunity to test themselves against one of the best sides in the world and finish their World Cup campaign on a high.

“This is a historic match for us as we have never played Australia at such a level. It will be tough against them but we will try to perform at our best to conclude the World Cup in a positive way,” said coach Nikolay Nerush.

Nerush has named Yury Kushnarev at fly half in place of Konstantin Rachkov, who started Russia’s previous two matches, while hooker Vladislav Korshunov returns from injury to reclaim the captaincy.

“Yury Kushnarev is back as fly half because in the first game he did not show all his best, so we want to give him another chance,” Nerush said.

“Konstantin Rachkov has started the previous two matches but we are still looking for reinforcement at this position.”

While the Wallabies admit they knew very little about the Russian side prior to the tournament, the Bears have been utilising a valuable source of Aussie knowledge within their squad.

Australian connection

Australian-born second row Adam Byrnes qualifies for Russia through his maternal grandmother and is looking forward to taking on many of his former teammates from the Queensland Reds.

“Playing against the Wallabies, against people I’ve either been teammates with or played against for a number of years, is fantastic,” he said.

“We’re all mates off the field, but once it’s on, it’s on.”

Despite the Australian connection, Deans is under no illusions about the intention of Russia to put in a physical showing in their last match at 2011 Rugby World Cup.

"They're on a plane (home) within 24 hours (of the match) so under that circumstance they'll bring everything,” he said.

“They're proud men, they're physical, strong, they've got some able backs and they've played some good rugby."