Western Force star Dylan Pietsch hoping for British and Irish Lions rematch after superb showing in opener
Western Force star Dylan Pietsch is quick to acknowledge he loves the big games and accompanying huge arenas and massive moments under lights.
After his impressive showing against the British and Irish Lions at Optus Stadium on Saturday night, it bodes well for the Wallabies.
Wearing a jersey designed by Pietsch himself made specially for the one-off match, the Force were not done justice by the 54-7 scoreline but Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt will have liked what he saw from the winger.
The 27 year-old will head east to link up with the rest of the Wallabies squad ahead of their clash with Fiji in Newcastle next Sunday and while Australia have a crowded outside back contingent, Pietsch made a strong case.
Whether he was elevating and hanging in the air to steal away kicks for the hosts, or dragging desperate defenders across the gain-line, Pietsch was a constant headache for the tourists.
'I'm pretty comfortable in my own skin and I know what I've got, so I don't try to have that chip on my shoulder,' Pietsch said post-game.
'It was awesome, it's hard not to get up for that game. I love playing big games, and playing against the Lions, you're not going to get much bigger.
'When you come into the occasion, you can either kind of fold or lean into it and I always try to lean into it.'
When Pietsch departed the match just after the hour mark, he led all comers for carries (11) and running metres (74).
Force captain Nic White, who teed Pietsch to snaffle their opening kick restart of the game, labelled his teammate's game as 'outstanding'.
'Really good in the air. He's fun to kick to and he just wants the ball. He's a big body out there and caused some serious headaches,' White said.
'He really rose to the occasion. He's one of the guys that when we talk about really enjoying it out there, the big occasion, big crowd, playing against the best in the north, he just wanted it and it was infectious.'
For Pietsch, his Force performance satiated his thirst for game time after he missed seven weeks with a 25cm tear in his quad in the second half of the season, only returning for the final match of the season against the Waratahs.
'I was just excited to play again and get the ball in hands and see what happened. It's big part of my game, as I try to be very physical and if you see that week in and week out, I'm doing my job right,' Pietsch said.
But Pietsch is not ready to put the cue in the rack just yet, as he eyes up facing them in a green and gold jersey nexts.
'I'm just really excited that I played for the Force against the Lions and in the jersey of design is the best thing and I'm going to camp next week to prep the boys for the Fiji game,' he said.
'Playing the Lions is one of the biggest things, that was so fun out there, and to be able to potentially do it again is definitely a big thing.'
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