It’s brutal as Wales prepare for Wallabies
SHAUN Edwards issued Wales with a World Cup battle cry and told Warren Gatland’s players they will remember it forever if they seal a crucial win over Australia in Tokyo.
Wales take on bogey side the Wallabies in the Japanese capital with the winner set to finish top of Pool D and avoid a likely quarter-final clash with England in the process.
Gatland’s men lost 13 matches in a row to Australia between 2008 and 2018, but finally broke their Wallaby duck with a 9-6 win in Cardiff last November.
A similarly tight encounter is expected here in sweltering temperatures, but Wales are ready for battle after a series of brutal training sessions.
Defence coach Edwards said: “There has been an edge to us all week. Let’s be honest we’ve been preparing for this since the draw was made. It’s a pivotal gam.
“I said to the players this is a game they will remember for the rest of their lives and we want to be successful in it.
“I think there will be more points than 9-6, but history tells you there have been a lot of one-score games between us and Australia. That’s why our discipline is so important. It wouldn’t surprise me if it’s another one-score game and hopefully it goes to Wales.
“Let’s get it on. These are two top and equallymatched teams. Hopefully it will be a good advert for the game of rugby.”
Wales boss Gatland has named an unchanged side with rookie flanker Aaron Wainwright up against top Wallaby ball poachers Michael Hooper and David Pocock in the back-row.
Dan Biggar will be a key man at fly-half and Australia have picked a team to combat his kicking threat. Dane Haylett-Petty starts at full-back for Michael Cheika’s Wallabies.
Northampton playmaker Biggar knows victory for Wales would leave them in a superb position for the knock-out stages. “We are fully aware what topping the group gets you,” he said.
“England are looking strong. Warren said in a meeting we’ll probably be playing France or England in the quarter-finals.
“We are looking to get the job done against Australia which would put us in a strong position to get out of the group. If we don’t get the result we know we’re into a big match against Fiji.”
Gatland’s men thrashed Georgia 43-14 in their Japan opener, but Australia will be a different beast.
Captain Alun Wyn Jones will become Wales’ most capped player when he makes his 130th appearance.
Australia head coach Michael Cheika said his team won’t appeal the three-week ban given to wing Reece Hodge for a dangerous tackle on Fiji’s Peceli Yato. Cheika has seleected Haylett-Petty and Adam AshleyCooper on the wing with Will Genia and Bernard Foley at half-back. Hodge hit back at claims he didn’t know rugby’s rules. World Rugby disciplinary documents indicated Hodge had admitted he was not aware of the laws on high tackles.
But the player said: “Numerous articles suggesting I admitted to not knowing the ‘new tackle techniques’ are an utter fabrication. “During the judiciary hearing I was asked of my knowledge of the framework specifically, not of any ‘new tackling techniques’ or whether I knew tackling high was going to be penalised.
“As rugby players we are aware contact to the head in a tackle is detrimental to the safety of our opposition and will be met with some form of sanction.”
Cheika insists his team won’t be derailed by the furore. He said: “We won’t be appealing. If they (World Rugby) can’t see that tackle doesn’t meet the threshold for a red card at first viewing, then I worry about further punishment.
“From the second we knew Reece was going to get a ban we sat down with the guys and said this is not going to be a distraction.
“Wales got to the top of the world rankings for a reason. I would say that makes them favourites.
“We like to run with the ball and Wales like to play on the counter and are a strong defensive team.
“They are always tight games, but this will be a canvas for us to show what we can do and what people don’t expect.”