Cheika sticks to his guns

Wallabies coach said easy choice to stay unchanged

Adam Coleman replacing Rory Arnold (hand) for the Test in Auckland.

“It was pretty straightforward – we wanted to give those guys another opportunity,” Cheika said yesterday.

“Why not try and back those guys up. They are hungry for it.”

Cheika did make three changes on the bench with uncapped flanker Liamwright replacing Luke Jones, and the return date for injured star David Pocock once again pushed back to their Test against Samoa.

Test veteran Adam AshleyCooper, 35, replacestombanks as outside backs cover and will make his firstwallabies appearance of the year, and play his 118th Test if called upon.

It is the second-most experienced bench in Wallabies history, with 474 combined caps.

Australia will return with the Bledisloe Cup if they can end their 33-year hex at Eden Park with a win or a draw. They’ve lost their last 22 Tests in New Zealand, dating back to 2002.

“There’s so much logic these days, so much data, sometimes you’ve got to go with feel and it just felt right to go with the same team more or less and let them build on what they did last week and in all the training they’ve done,” Cheika said.

The Bledisloe Cup decider at Eden Park has been labelled the ultimateworld Cup trial for the All Blacks by coach Steve Hansen in explaining his axing of three star players.

Wingers Ben Smith and Rieko Ioane, along with centurion prop Owen Franks, were dumped fromnew Zealand’s 23 in a dramatic overhaul.

Young flyers Sevu Reece and George Bridge are introduced on the wing with just four caps between them, while prop Nepo Laulala is also under the blowtorch in his 11th Test start.

Hansen wouldn’t have it any other way as the world champions seek a response to last week’s 47-26 drubbing in Perth.

“I’m loving it. This is the best challenge we can get prior to going to aworld Cup,” Hansen said. “We’ve got to find out more about these other people in big pressure-cooker situations. You don’t getmuch bigger than this one.”