Eddie Jones finally does what he was too afraid to do with England
Throughout his whole time with England, Eddie Jones was always suggesting some weird and wonderful positional changes. Winger Jack Nowell’s move to flanker was one, and there were frequent suggestions that Sam Simmonds or Ben Earl could be used in the centres. In the end, the most adventurous he ever got was moving Courtney Lawes to blindside flanker and Tom Curry to No8.
But Jones has remained true to his word and done what he always threatened to do, almost. In what is only his second game in charge of Australia, Jones has named a 6-2 split on the bench for his side to play Argentina in Sydney. A 6-2 split with a twist.
That is because the extra forward on the bench is uncapped Melbourne Rebels flanker Josh Kemeny- Jones’ latest wild experiment. The head coach has already flirted with the idea of playing the pacey Kemeny on the wing, and it now looks like he will be covering that position from the bench against the Pumas.
This is not a new idea in Test rugby though, as France have deployed Stade Francais No8 Sekou Macalou in a similar role for a while now, and to great success. Jones had plenty of these outlandish plans for England, but never backed them up. Maybe it was the fear of the backlash from the English public? Maybe the English players just were not good enough. Whatever the reason was, he is not so afraid of making these selections with the Wallabies.
Your side to take on @lospumas in Sydney 🦘
Get your tickets to come support us in our first Test on home soil 👉 https://t.co/IUVJatOPH7
🏟 @commbankstadium, Sydney
🗓 Sat 15 July 7:45pm AEST
📺 @StanSportAU @Channel9 @9Gem #AUSvARG #Wallabies @eToroAU pic.twitter.com/5Gyz62C9Pf— Wallabies (@wallabies) July 12, 2023
Wallabies team to take on Argentina
1. James Slipper (c)
2. David Porecki
3. Allan Alaalatoa
4. Richie Arnold
5. Will Skelton
6. Jed Holloway
7. Fraser McReight
8. Rob Valetini
9. Nic White
10. Quade Cooper
11. Marika Koroibete
12. Samu Kerevi
13. Len Ikitau
14. Mark Nawaqanitawase
15. Tom Wright
Replacements
16. Jordan Uelese
17. Angus Bell
18. Pone Fa’amausili
19. Matt Philip
20. Rob Leota
21. Josh Kemeny
22. Tate McDermott
23. Carter Gordon
