VIDEO: Wallaby rookie has some 'Butch James' in him
REACTION: Wallaby head coach Eddie Jones is seeing shades of former greats Stephen Larkham and South Africa’s Butch James in young playmaker Carter Gordon.
The veteran coach, who steered the Wallabies to their last Cup triumph back in 2002, has overhauled his team for Saturday’s Rugby Championship clash against the All Blacks in Melbourne.
The most notable change is Gordon starting his first Test for the Wallabies. He replaces Quade Cooper, who started at No.10 against Argentina and South Africa.
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“If you look back at players, past great No.10s, he’s got a mixture of Butch James defensively, he’s a tough kid,” Jones said when asked about Gordon.
“And then he’s got that little bit of a glide that Larkham had, he can take the ball at pace and has got a good passing game.”
Meanwhile, Tom Hooper, who missed the last Test with a shoulder injury, is back at openside flank in a new-look back row that features Jed Holloway at blindside flank and Rob Valetini at No.8.
Hooper has only started once for the Brumbies in the No.7 jersey but Jones lauded his performance in the Super Rugby Pacific semifinal against the Chiefs.
“I think the best game I saw from an Australian seven was Tom against the Chiefs,” Jones said.
“The way he competed hard at the breakdown was first class.”
To add some heat to the fixture, a smiling Eddie Jones has put New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins on notice to prepare for a dip in the Kiwi economy, backing the Wallabies to win the opening Bledisloe Cup clash
“There’s nothing better than Australian rugby taking on New Zealand rugby because the New Zealanders all think they’re better than us, they always have, and so we get an opportunity,” said the former England coach, adding it meant more leading his own country into battle.
“There’s nothing better than winning against New Zealand because you feel the country sinking.
“It’s not just rugby that sinks, the country sinks, the whole economy goes down so the Prime Minister’s there with his fingers crossed hoping the All Blacks win.
“We’ve got a bit of a job here to do so maybe put the New Zealand Prime Minister on call that the economy’s going to suffer and at the same time raise our stakes here.”
Source: AAP
