Australian captain Stirling Mortlock said Tuesday that the Wallabies would use their opening Rugby World Cup pool match against Japan as preparation for a key clash with Wales.
Speaking the day after he was named captain of Australia’s World Cup squad, the 30-year-old Mortlock said the Wallabies’ thoughts had already turned to their second pool match — against Wales in Cardiff on September 15.
The Australia-Wales match is seen as crucial to the outcome of the tournament as the winner would likely top the pool, which also features Fiji and the United States, thus avoiding a probable quarterfinal clash against one of the tournament favourites, South Africa.
The pool winner would probably face England in the quarterfinals — a less formidable opponent, if recent form is any indication.
”Realistically our first match against Japan, in the minds of the team, is a springboard to the match against Wales at Millennium Stadium,” Mortlock said.
”The Japan match will be our first match for a while and we’ll all be a little bit rusty, but hopefully we’ll put that aside and play well, which would give us a bit of confidence going into the Welsh game,” he added.
”It’s very hard to not think about the Wales game. Wales are a nation that has been up and down of late but they’re a team that we know has got a lot of quality about them, and playing at home in a World Cup pool match is a massive boost — playing a World Cup match in their home stadium with their home crowd, they’ll draw a huge amount out of that.”
Mortlock said Australia’s 2-0 Test series win over the Welsh last month would mean nothing when the two sides face-off in Cardiff.
Wales rested 17 first choice players for their tour of Australia, but were only denied a win in the first Test in Sydney when Wallabies replacement Stephen Hoiles crossed for a try in injury time.
The Welsh were competitive in the first half of the second Test in Brisbane before fading badly and allowing the Wallabies in for 31 unanswered points.
”They sent an allegedly under strength team out here and they competed quite well with us, so we’re under no illusions that it’ll be a massive match,” Mortlock said.
Mortlock said New Zealand were still the favourites to win the World Cup and said they were likely to be pushed by Australia, France and Ireland.
”The All Blacks are still the team to beat — their form has been consistently good and they’ve targeted peaking for this World Cup,” he said.
”They’re doing a lot of things differently than they normally do, so they’re easily the team to beat. I think France playing at home have also been consistently good for the last two to three years and they’ll be very tough.
”And I think Ireland are a good chance as well — they’re a top tier nation now and I think they’ll do very well.”
Former skipper George Gregan — heading to his fourth World Cup before he retires from international rugby — will share the vice-captain’s duties alongside flanker Phil Waugh.
The Wallabies’ squad includes 14 players with previous World Cup experience. – Sapa-AFP