...while Aussies talk up Finn
ROB ROBERTSON
AUSTRALIA have identified Finn Russell as Scotland’s main threat ahead of tomorrow’s Test — with head coach Michael Cheika ordering his side to ‘get in the face’ of the stand-off.
Gregor Townsend’s men take on the Wallabies at Allianz Stadium here in the early hours tomorrow, with the Scots looking to turn the tide after some narrow — and heartbreaking — defeats to their hosts.
Russell (left), who is understood to be next in line should the Lions’ injury problems continue at No 10, will be key to Scottish plans to
SCOTLAND’S nemesis Bernard Foley is known as ‘The Iceman’ for good reason. And the Australian insists he will have no problem living up to his moniker if called on to put the boot into the Scots once again. The Australian fly-half, of course, has shattered Scottish hearts twice over the past two years. It was Foley’s last-minute penalty — controversially awarded by South African referee Craig Joubert — in the 2015 World Cup quarter-final that helped Australia to a 35-34 win. And he was at it again when his conversion of a Tevita Kuridrani try with three minutes left meant his team stole a 23-22 win at Murrayfield last November. ‘If it comes down to it, I’ll put my hand up to be in that position again,’ said Foley, who is renowned for his ability under pressure. ‘Scotland are a terrific team and our game against them this Saturday could go down to the wire again, so I have to be ready to put over another late kick at goal. ‘The last two times I have played against them, the games have been real battles that have gone to the death. I am sure it will be another tight match on Saturday, so I have to put over my penalties when I have to.’ In the build-up to this weekend’s match, a Sydneybased ice sculpture created a not too convincing likeness of the 43-time-capped fly-half. Unveiled in a local park, the 27-year-old was on hand to have a look at his image in ice, presumably before it melted, and he also remained adamant that, despite the controversy, Australia were worthy of their World Cup triumph over the Scots.
‘It was five tries to three tries in our favour,’ he said. ‘Scotland’s two second-half tries came through an intercept and a charge-down.
‘We were probably lucky to get that penalty but I felt we were the more dominant side throughout.
‘Credit to Scotland, though. They were always fighting and were always in the game right through to the 80th minute.
‘I look back on that kick against Scotland and only now realise the magnitude of it.
‘At the time, I was just trying to block everything out as I lined it up. It was a pretty stressful moment but I put it over.
‘Looking back, as a team we were definitely not prepared to roll out of the World Cup in the quarterfinals to Scotland. We had played some good games in the pool matches but we were destined for bigger things.
‘Although I still think we were dominant in that World Cup quarter-final. If you flip that to last year’s game, then Scotland dominated in a number of areas.
‘They were unlucky not to win that game at Murrayfield but, in saying that, we dug deep on both occasions to come away with the victory.’
Foley will line up in a strong Australian side that shows only one change to the one that beat Fiji in Melbourne last weekend.
Eto Nabuli, 28, will don a gold jersey for the first time after fellow winger Henry Speight was ruled out with a hamstring strain following his two-try effort against the South Sea Islanders.
Foley believes Nabuli will be a real danger to the Scots but expects another incredibly close game between the two sides.
‘Although we always expect a close game against Scotland, having home advantage should help us,’ he continued. ‘Scotland are a top-class outfit and play with an attacking style that suits them and is good to watch.
‘They have a new coach in Gregor Townsend, so we are expecting them to play with real flair and be an exciting team for the fans to watch.
‘They played well against Italy last weekend and scored some fine tries, so we have to be at the top of our game defensively.
‘Scotland always run us close as both teams are passionate and love playing international matches.
‘In the last five games we have been separated by just six points at the most, which just shows the nature of these contests and they are always tightly contested.
‘A similar tough test is what we are preparing for.’