LIVE: 'Lethal' Wallabies make dream start to Test

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By Dennis Passa, AP24 Sep 2021 06:47

Australia manager Dave Rennie says the look his squad utilized to bushed South Africa doubly successful consecutive Rugby Championship matches should enactment again contiguous (8.05pm AEST) successful the archetypal of 2 against Argentina.

It conscionable mightiness instrumentality a while.

"What we've learned implicit the past fewer weeks is you've got to bent connected successful the combat for a agelong time, and sometimes it takes 60 oregon 70 minutes to ace a side," Rennie said up of the lucifer astatine Townsville.

"So we request to spot that resilience connected the weekend."

Argentina is winless successful 4 Rugby Championship matches — losing doubly each to South Africa and New Zealand.

The Wallabies, 2-2, beryllium 1 constituent down South Africa successful the standings, with New Zealand unbeaten aft 4 games.

Next weekend, the aforesaid teams play again successful the last circular connected the Gold Coast.

Most of the tourney has been played successful Queensland owed to COVID-19-related question restrictions and quarantines.

Rennie said helium knows a broadside similar Argentina with thing to suffer tin beryllium arsenic unsafe arsenic any.

"They are a spot different, they'll privation to explicit themselves, their forwards propulsion a batch much passes," Rennie said.

"They'll antagonistic erstwhile fixed the accidental — they're precise bully astatine it. They're besides truly bully astatine filling the field, precise disciplined astir the defence and it tin beryllium hard to interruption down."

Australia is looking to triumph 3 matches successful a enactment for the archetypal clip since 2017.

On Thursday, Rennie named Reece Hodge astatine fullback, the extremity of 5 consecutive Test appearances disconnected the seat for the Melbourne Rebels player.

He'll regenerate Tom Banks, who broke his close limb midway done the archetypal fractional of Australia's 30-17 triumph implicit the Springboks past weekend.

Fellow Rebels subordinate Rob Leota earned his archetypal commencement for Australia, astatine blindside flanker.

He and Hodge are 2 of 3 changes to the matchday squad with playmaker James O'Connor acceptable to marque his archetypal planetary quality for the twelvemonth from the reserves.

Argentina's starting XV is unchanged from the broadside which mislaid to New Zealand 36-13 past play successful Brisbane.

The lone changes were successful the reserves, wherever prop Rodrigo Martinez was included alternatively of Carlos Muzzio, flanker Joaquin Oviedo for Tomas Lezana, and helping Mateo Carreras alternatively of Matias Moroni, who had a breached nose.

Argentina manager Mario Ledesma said helium saw immoderate improvements successful past weekend's nonaccomplishment to New Zealand, but said his squad was inactive lacking the quality to crook chances into points.

Ledesma praised the Wallabies, admitting they look similar a antithetic broadside from past twelvemonth erstwhile the teams played 2 draws successful the tournament.

"I deliberation Australia is simply a antithetic beast than what it was past year," Ledesma said.

"They're overmuch much confident, they've had amended results and precise bully contented against South Africa. It's a large situation to play them connected the weekend."

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