Australia coach Rennie wary of revitalised Scots ruining return
IT IS not that long since Dave Rennie left his job as Glasgow’s head coach to take up the equivalent post with Australia, but the former Warriors boss believes Scotland have made significant progress in that time.
Speaking yesterday after naming his squad for tomorrow’s international between the teams, Rennie, whose time at Scotstoun ended in May 2020, suggested that Gregor Townsend’s side might well have won this year’s Six Nations. And he identified two former Glasgow players and one current one as the principal threats to the Wallabies, placing particular emphasis, predictably enough, on the need to shut down Scotland stand-off Finn Russell.
“They have grown, I reckon,” Rennie said when asked how Scotland had changed since he headed south. “They’ve obviously got a forward pack that can be hugely competitive, very good post-tackle, they have a strong defensive game and they probably kick a bit more than they did. We’ve seen a lot of those players – Finn Russell, Ali Price, Stuart Hogg – who have been around for a long time. It gives them a lot of strike power and experience.
“We’ve watched a lot of their footy recently, all the Six Nations games. I thought they had a really strong tournament. They were a late penalty away from beating Ireland and got pipped with 14 men against Wales. They beat the rest. They were very close to winning it.
“We’ve got a huge amount of respect for them. They will be
very well prepared. I know the coaching staff well, so they have a very strong coaching group. We’re very well aware they will throw a few things at us.
“I think all teams know that Finn has a strong run, kick, pass game. He can do it all if you give him time and space. We need to limit his time and space: that’s going to be crucial for us.”
The last time the teams met, Scotland made excellent use of the extra space afforded to them after Wallabies prop Sekope Kepu had been sent off shortly before half-time. Rennie insisted that the 53-24 defeat his current side suffered back in 2017 had not been the focus of too much discussion this week, but suggested that the Australians had not been aware enough of the Scottish threat that afternoon at Murrayfield.
“There hasn’t been a lot of talk about it. There are a handful of guys who played in that game. We’re pretty much focusing on what we’ve got to
do now and haven’t reflected too much on the past.
“I imagine there are a couple of scars there for those who played in it. I think they underestimated Scotland. There was a red card that probably made things tougher for the Wallabies, but it was a Scottish team that can hurt you and it’s pretty similar to what we’re going to face this weekend.”
Rennie has restored three experienced France-based players to his matchday 23, with Rory Arnold starting at lock, Will Skelton as secondrow back-up on the bench and utility back Kurtley Beale also among the substitutes. “They’re very passionate, desperate to play,” he said of the trio. “We didn’t want them coming in and feeling their way in: they’ve got a lot of experience and we wanted them to come in and contribute immediately.
“They’ve been great. They’re highly motivated. It’s good to get some fresh legs in – guys who can share the load.
“Kurtley has been fantastic. He’s a bit to get his head around – he’s potentially covering 15, he’s covering 10. He looks sharp. He probably thought his Wallaby dream was over, so it’s exciting for him and for his family.
“We just felt with Will coming off the bench, he’s a beast and will give us really good impact,” the coach continued when asked why he had opted to start with Toulouse lock Arnold instead of Skelton, who plays for La Rochelle.
Replacement back Izaia Perese is the only uncapped member of the 23. With tighthead prop Taniela ‘Tongan Thor’ Tupou also named among the substitutes, Rennie appears confident he will get a consistently high-energy 80 minutes from his squad. “We just felt this game was right to have Taniela off the bench,” he added. “We’re fortunate we’ve got two high-quality 3s. Al [starting tighthead Allan Alaalatoa] is very good around maul and maul defence - he’ll give us plenty of work rate early. Hopefully Taniela gives us power and X factor off the bench.”