Wallabies change their mind about flyhalf cover for Bok clash
Coach Joe Schmidt on Friday decided he would pick Tane Edmed, who has a single cap, as cover and has taken loose forward Nick Champion de Crespigny off the list of replacements he had named on Thursday.
Ben Donaldson was originally meant to be cover for the 35-year-old O'Connor, who will play for the Wallabies for the first time in three years, but went down with an unspecified upper leg injury in training on Thursday ahead of the test at Ellis Park.
It added to the woes at No. 10 for Australia, whose first choice Tom Lynagh suffered a concussion in the third test against the British & Irish Lions in Sydney a fortnight ago and did not travel for the two matches against the Springboks. The second clash is in Cape Town next weekend.
'Dono (Donaldson) went down in last-minute training on Thursday afternoon, which wasn't ideal after the team has been announced internally,' explained captain Harry Wilson at a press conference on Friday.
'We named Crep (Champion de Crespigny) but the coach has had a few meetings overnight and again this morning to work out what would be the best replacement and decided to put in Tane, which he's really excited about.
"We've got a lot of confidence in him, he's been around the group now for a little while and what he's put in on the training park has been first class," Wilson added.
The captain is also pleased to see O'Connor back in the line-up.
'After three years, I know he's really excited to be out there. He's 35 years old. He's got plenty of experience. He's got plenty of confidence, and we can't wait to see him go out there and do his job.'
O'Connor will also form an experienced halfback combination with Nic White, who put off his retirement from international rugby to travel with the Wallabies after injury to Jake Gordon, who played at scrumhalf in the first two tests against the Lions last month.
'When you have two players in two really key positions, who have played everywhere around the world and in really big matches, definitely it's a lot of confidence and they both have quite loud voices in the group and a lot of respect from everyone in the group," added Wilson.
"So I'm really looking forward to seeing them lead us around the park.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Australia edge China for Asia Cup 'three-peat'
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Australia landed a third straight Asia Cup title when China's Hu Mingxuan missed a three-point buzzer beater at the end of Sunday's final, leaving the Boomers to lift the trophy with a 90-89 victory at Jeddah's King Abdullah Sports City. Xavier Cooks, who was named game MVP, scored 30 points and tournament MVP Jaylin Galloway poured in 23 as Australia fought back from an early deficit to deny China a record-extending 17th triumph in the continental championship. "The main thing is I am so proud of the character of our guys," said Boomers coach Adam Caporn. "We were down by 15, but we saw our players' toughness, their problem-solving attitude. We have great people in the programme, and in my opinion that's why we won." Hu was the standout for China with 26 points and captain Zhao Rui said coming so close to snatching the title proved the team were on the right track. "This loss actually motivates us," he said. "Some fans probably didn't expect a close game, but we delivered a wonderful game for the fans tonight. "This one-point loss will remind us to work harder and get better. Today is just the start, not the end." Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore NDR 2025: Age Well Neighbourhoods will help improve seniors' access to healthcare, social activities Singapore NDR 2025: New govt-funded traineeship scheme for ITE, poly, university graduates Singapore NDR 2025: More avenues for S'poreans to be heard, get involved will be opened up, says PM Wong Business Singapore key exports fall worse than expected in July as shipments to US plunge 42.7% World Trump, tech and Texas: What's next for the US? Singapore N(T) students more likely to finish school, do as well in job market as N(A) peers: Study Singapore Singapore-developed device for diabetics measures long-term average blood sugar levels within 6 mins Business Asean can fend off blow from protectionism by boosting integration: Singapore Business Federation Australia joined FIBA's Asian zone from Oceania a decade ago and Sunday's victory kept them unbeaten in 18 Asia Cup matches going back to their debut in 2017. Earlier on Sunday, Iran beat New Zealand's Tall Blacks 79-73 to secure third place. REUTERS
CNA
10 hours ago
- CNA
Sailing-France edge rivals in thriller to win SailGP Germany
SASSNITZ, Germany :France secured their first SailGP victory of the year as Quentin Delapierre's team won the Germany Sail Grand Prix on Sunday, edging a nail-biting three-boat duel on the calm waters of Sassnitz. In a gripping finale that came down to the final metres, France kept their composure to edge out Australia and Britain, who finished second and third respectively. The French combined bold tactics with precision, sustaining their foiling speed while their opponents struggled to keep pace in Sail GP's thrilling fifth season. "It's an amazing feeling," said Delapierre, who picked up his first event win since the third season. "It's been a while since we won a Grand Prix - it's a super nice feeling. It was super shifty out there but we just enjoyed it. "It was super good fun; a good game playing with the shifts and the pressure. It will be a good memory." Flawless execution proved decisive as the race boiled down to who could stay on the foils, with France crossing first to lift the SailGP Germany title. Dylan Fletcher's Britain crew were forced out of race four in Sassnitz on Saturday after a collision with the U.S. team but returned to the start line following overnight repairs. Brazil missed the race after Friday's collision with France, which sent Delapierre to hospital for checks and disrupted their preparations for the Grand Prix. Australia lead the overall championship table level on 61 points with New Zealand. Britain are third with 58 points. The next round is in Saint-Tropez from September 12-13.
CNA
17 hours ago
- CNA
Chimaev dominance in UFC title win sends stark warning to rivals
Khamzat Chimaev's total dominance of Dricus du Plessis to win the UFC middleweight title in Chicago on Saturday was reflected in some jaw-dropping statistics that paint a stark picture of the challenge faced by any challenger hoping to dethrone him. Apart from the last couple of minutes of the final round, the Chechen-born Chimaev, who began training in MMA while living in Sweden before moving to Abu Dhabi and fighting under the flag of the United Arab Emirates, utterly smothered his South African opponent. Despite being the champion, Du Plessis came into the fight as the betting underdog and it quickly became apparent why. Having built his career on his suffocating wrestling, the 31-year-old Chimaev immediately took the champion down and the punishment began. In all, Chimaev fired off a whopping 567 strikes over the course of five five-minute rounds, landing a stunning 529 of them. Du Plessis managed a mere 68, and landed only 45. Nothing the challenger did was either unexpected or fancy. He took the fight to the mat with a double-leg takedown and then advanced to a crucifix position, trapping the right arm of Du Plessis with his legs and lying across his opponent's torso to control his other arm. That left Du Plessis almost defenceless as Chimaev fired short left hands at his head, knowing that one wrong move by the man on the bottom while trying to escape could put him in a worse position, or even see him knocked out. To his great credit Du Plessis, who is also 31, never quit but by the end of the third round he was so far behind on the scorecards that he needed a finish. He somehow found the energy to go on the offensive in the final two minutes of the fight, but to no avail. Incredibly for such a one-sided fight, the toughness of Du Plessis managed to keep the fans in attendance at the United Center on the edge of their seats, despite knowing that Chimaev was on his way to a one-sided unanimous decision victory. The UFC had a number of middleweight contenders sitting cage-side, and their only consolation as they watched the brutal beat-down of Du Plessis and Chimaev's coronation might have been that he didn't manage to finish the fight early with a violent knockout or submission. If that is indeed his only flaw, none of them will be heading to the gym on Monday morning and relishing the prospect of facing the new champion and challenging him for the belt.
