Michael Hooper
Wallabies captain Michael Hooper has put South Africa on notice, saying he wants both their No.2 world ranking and the Mandela Challenge Plate back.
With Australia ranked third behind the All Blacks and Springboks, wins in Perth and then Cape Town could see them rise to No2 for the first time under new coach Ewen McKenzie.
It would also see them regain the Mandela Plate, which they lost last season after holding it for three years.
And it all starts at Perth’s Patersons Stadium this Saturday.
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“They’ve got two things that we want,” Hooper said.
“They’re number two in the world and they’ve got the Mandela Plate.
“So there’s silverware on offer and a chance to up our ranking.
“Every chance you get to play a top team like the All Blacks, like the South Africans, is a great opportunity to improve.”
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Matt Hodgson
Nothing less than true grit will get the Wallabies over the line against South Africa in Perth, and Matt Hodgson knows it.
The elder statesman of the Wallabies squad – at 33 he shades Wycliff Palu for old-man honours – has made grit something of a calling card throughout his career.
In his first Test appearance in more than three years on Saturday, Hodgson can be expected to bring his trademark toughness and on-ball tenacity to the battle field in the city he calls home.
But he will also bring valuable inside knowledge. As the captain of a Force squad with seven South African players and two South African coaches, Hodgson has had plenty of time to observe the qualities that appear intrinsic to the Springboks’ style.
Waratahs second-rower Jacques Potgieter put it this way – South African sides believe Australian teams aren’t up to the challenge physically.
Hodgson said his teammates were more measured.
“Not so much that we’re soft, more that they love the confrontation and the contact,” he said.
“That’s where they think they can get over the top of Australian and New Zealand teams.”
The Force won three out of four games this season against South African opposition, including a win in Bloemfontein against the Cheetahs and a rain-soaked battle with the Bulls at home in Perth.
“We use our smarts a bit and try to use some variation around [their direct style], but we also like to muscle up there as well,” Hodgson said.
“We showed that against the Bulls, in the wet-weather football, that we can play that contact type of football.”
The Wallabies trained against the Force in Perth on Thursday, pitting the likes of Wilhelm Steenkamp and Brynard Stander against the Australian pack.
“They go hard-out during training … And their mentality, what they think about is momentum in the carry and breakdown,” Hodgson said.
They are all tips he hopes the Wallabies can take into their clash with the vastly more experienced Springboks forwards on Saturday.
“If you look at the last game [against New Zealand], we started well and got some momentum off the kick-off but took our foot off the throttle,” he said.
“The first 20 [minutes] is big in any game. It sets the mindset of not only how you play but what the opposition thinks of you, and then the front end of the second half is where we want to hit our straps and go for it.”
Hodgson’s selection on the bench is reward for his dedication.
The versatile openside breakaway said he had let go of his Test hopes after missing out on selection in the 2011 World Cup squad.
“Probably through the disappointment of the World Cup and not getting selected after that, I refocused a bit and just wanted to have some solid minutes and good performances through the Force,” Hodgson said.
“Taking over the captaincy here, I just enjoyed my time here and tried to get the team to the level I knew it could be. [That] was probably the biggest goal I had.”
He and coach Michael Foley exceeded expectations on that front. Only a heartbreaking final-round loss to the Brumbies cruelled the side’s finals hopes, and Hodgson said the Force was still his focus.
“I’ve only got short-term goals with the Wallabies,” he said.
“Hopefully, with a few good performances off the bench, I can push for that starting [spot] and hopefully the Force play well again next year and I can aim for the World Cup, but that’s next year’s focus, not this year.”