Wallabies ready for scrum battle
Australia have a long history of being outmuscled at the set piece by their most prominent Pool A rivals, with England's forwards getting the better of them in their most recent encounter, a 26-17 defeat last year.
The Australian eight also conceded a penalty try at the scrum during the Wallabies' 33-28 win over Wales last year.
Addressing set-piece weaknesses has been at the forefront of Cheika's mind since he took over the Australian reins just under a year ago, with Argentinian front row legend Mario Ledesma appointed as forwards coach in July.
The influence of former Pumas prop Ledesma, one of the most destructive scrummagers in world rugby during his playing days, was evident during Saturday's 47-10 win over the US Eagles on Saturday, when the Wallabies twice won scrums against the head in the opening minutes.
Cheika says the Wallaby forwards will now head into the World Cup as a more formidable unit.
"I feel we've improved in driving mauls and scrums and I still think that we're been working hard in that area," Cheika said.
"It's the most humbling area of the game because you can win one – and then get smashed in the next.
"So you've got to be on the money every single time. We've really tried to work hard on isolating every single set-piece and saying 'This one is the most important'."
Australia's captain in Chicago, prop James Slipper, deputising for Stephen Moore, said the Wallabies were ready for their scrum to be targeted by England at the World Cup.
"We've been working really really hard on the scrummage – we know going into the World Cup it's going to be a key focus for us as a Wallaby group and as a squad," Slipper said.
"I think the work we've done not only in the last week or two but in the Rugby Championship with Mario, the players have all bought into the philosophy that we want to take into games.
"We're going to have to keep improving because it's going to be a major focus for us moving forward into the World Cup.
"They (England) have done it for years and they would have identified our scrum as a place maybe they can target but in saying that, we're more than happy to take them on there."
Cheika meanwhile said he was unconcerned that for all their improvements, Australia may still struggle to shake off the perception that their forwards were culpable whenever set-pieces broke down.
"I don't think it's the referees – and the only way we can change that perception is by consistently performing in that area," he said.
"At the end of the day it's always about interpretation. That stuff's out of my hands. I think we've made improvements and I think we can make more improvements before the tournament starts.
"The proof of the pudding's going to be in the eating isn't it? If we've improved enough, we'll do well in this part of the game."
AFP
