Wallabies call four Australia A reps into squad before Scotland showdown

Australia A representatives Tom Hooper, Harry Hoopert, Darby Lancaster and Hamish Stewart have been called into the Wallabies squad before this weekend’s decisive Spring Tour showdown against Scotland at their Edinburgh fortress Murrayfield.

Following Australia A’s 10-all draw with Bristol Bears at Ashton Gate and their heavy loss to England A at Twickenham Stoop, the quartet have been prompted to the top squad ahead of the Wallabies’ third match on their four-Test end-of-year tour.

There’s a genuine buzz about the Wallabies in Australia right now, with the men ing old keeping their hopes of a historic grand slam alive after their dramatic win over England at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium, and then dominating Wales 52-20 at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

Tom Wright and Matt Faessler were both among the standouts with the pair crossing for a hat-trick each. But it wasn’t all good news for Joe Schmidt’s men, with milestone man Samu Kerevi receiving a red card in his 50^th Test match in Wallaby gold.

That’s potentially opened the door for Stewart to challenge for a spot in Australia’s matchday 23 to play Scotland, with the midfielder playing a couple of Tests for the Wallabies during The Rugby Championship. But three other men have also been promoted.

Lancaster debuted at Test level in the Wallabies’ hard-fought 40-29 win over Georgia at Sydney’s Allianz Stadium during the July international window. Hooper also played in that Test before lining up once more in TRC against the world champion Springboks in Perth.

Then there’s Hoopert, who is yet to enter the Test rugby arena. The uncapped front rower held his own on Australia A duty after coming off the bench against Bristol before starting against England A, and he’s been rewarded for those efforts with a Wallabies call-up.

“Tom Hooper, Harry Hoopert, Darby Lancaster and Hamish Stewart have joined the group in Edinburgh ahead of Saturday’s Test against Scotland,” the Instagram post read.

The Wallabies only managed to win one of their six matches during TRC, and that was a dramatic one-point win over Los Pumas in Argentina. They were otherwise caught on the wrong side of scoreless, including a record 67-27 loss to Argentina the following week in Santa Fe.

But the Aussies seem to have turned a bit of a corner during their northern tour so far, with Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii impressing on debut during the team’s stunning win over England earlier this month – with Max Jorgensen scoring the match-winner in the 84^th minute.

They backed up that performance with an emphatic eight-try performance against Warren Gatland’s Wales, which saw them register an 11^th consecutive defeat. Wales will face South Africa this weekend as they look to avoid going a full calendar year without a win.

As the Wallabies continues to chase a grand slam, which would be incredible before next year’s British and Irish Lions Series, they know the challenge that awaits is by no means an easy one. They’ll face Scotland up next before travelling to Dublin for a Test with Ireland.