‘Gen Next’ Wallabies go big with Tui

MICHAEL Cheika said his plan to usher in the Wallabies’ “Gen Next” is firmly on track after naming yet another debutant on his bench in the extra-large shape of Lukhan Tui.

Tui was confirmed as an extra forward reserve for Australia on a 6-2 bench designed to match the muscle of the Springbok pack in Bloemfontein tomorrow.

Tui has no shortage of bulk, standing at 124kg and 1.98m, and though he plays lock for Queensland alongside fellow Wallaby greenhorn Izack Rodda, the 21-year-old is seen as a back-row option as well by Cheika.

If and when Tui gets on, he’ll be the 24th debutant for the Wallabies since the 2015 World Cup.

Just this year, Cheika has blooded 10 new players already in seven Tests.

“Tui has had a good season with the Reds and in a game like this, where forward play is going to be ultra-important, there is no better place to get that Test out,” Cheika said.

“I know that people might say ‘ Why do you do this with younger guys in this environment’ but at the end of the day I see these as our talented players. I want to get them time now and give them the experience now. I still think they can perform well.”

The four-year cycle of international rugby is now firmly observed by most coaches, meaning “Gen Next” should really be called “Gen Next World Cup”.

After tapping firmly into the power of the greybeard in 2015 — more than a third of his squad was over 30 — Cheika has spent the past two years rebuilding his team in the fresh image of youth.

Stephen Moore and Tatafu Polota-Nau are now the only 30-plus men in the squad.

“We said from last year we wanted to change the look of the team, we had a certain age profile and we knew we had guys going overseas,” Cheika said. “And we knew there would be some hard yards in that, and there have been. Some positive hard yards and some negative hard yards.’’