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All Blacks wary of 'hurting' Wallabies with young gun at the helm
By AAP
Ardie Savea has delivered a frightening message to Wallabies fans, insisting the All Blacks can go to another level in their Bledisloe Cup Test in Melbourne.
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Savea will lead the New Zealanders at the MCG on Saturday night – regular skipper Sam Cane is out injured – needing a victory to secure the prized trans-Tasman trophy for a 21st year with a game to play in Dunedin next month.
With more than 80,000 expected, the game is the Wallabies’ last on home soil before the Rugby World Cup gets underway in France in early September.
The Wallabies visited the MCG through the week many for the first time, while the All Blacks are on a hit-and-run mission only arriving Thursday night.
While the Australian side has opened their campaign under Eddie Jones with two losses, the All Blacks have delivered two emphatic victories over Argentina and world champions South Africa.
But the bullocking No.8 insists his team can get better.
“There’s a lot more work that we can be better at,” Savea said.
“We started well in both Tests and let teams back in so we really want to play the game right for the whole 80 minutes.
“It’s always the goal for any team to get the dub (win) consistently … it will be a big challenge against an Aussie team that’s hurting.”
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Jones was at the helm in his first stint as Wallabies coach when Australia last won the trophy back in 2002 and joked this week New Zealand’s economy would sink on the back of an All Blacks loss.
Savea acknowledged the importance of the Cup to his country.
“It means so much not only to the All Blacks but to the whole of New Zealand, so a lot’s on the line – we know that, we feel that, we harness that.”
While Cane’s absence is the only change to the Kiwi line-up, the Wallabies have seven new faces in the starting team, including debutant playmaker Carter Gordon.
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A photo surfaced this week of Savea with a 16-year-old Gordon in his school uniform.
Savea didn’t recall their meeting but did remember Gordon’s performance for the Melbourne Rebels when they clashed during Super Rugby Pacific this season.
“He can play and he showed that during Super Rugby – I tried to scrap him in with the Canes (Hurricanes) in Melbourne and probably came off second best.
“That’s what I like about him, he doesn’t take a step back, he’s young but he’s not afraid of the challenge.
“That’s something for us to keep an eye on because we know he’s going to attack the line and play his game so that’s hopefully something we can nullify.”
Regular Wallabies co-captain James Slipper is starting from the bench, handing the armband to fellow prop Allan Alalaatoa.
Slipper led the Wallabies in the Bledisloe clash last year in Melbourne at Marvel Stadium when they just missed a famous victory.
The veteran prop said they didn’t need to use that last-gasp loss as motivation.
“I’m not sure it’s motivation – if you look at our last two games that’s pretty motivating,” Slipper said.
“We’re coming off two pretty disappointing results so we’re looking back to those games to try to get better.
“We know what’s in front of us and what we have to do and we’re going to have to put in one hell of a shift to get a result but the boys have prepared well.”
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