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Tedesco should be Australia's fullback against the Kiwis

James Tedesco (AAP Image/Action Photographics, Rob Cox)
Expert
10th April, 2016
95
2775 Reads

James Tedesco should be fast-tracked into the Australian team for the Test against New Zealand at Hunter Stadium on May 6.

He’s going to be the regular Australian fullback of the future anyway and he’s a great player now, so why wait?

Tedesco is all but certain to be the NSW fullback for the State of Origin series starting on June 1. He would have to get injured or his form go alarmingly backwards between now and then for that not to happen.

But he’s ready to play for his country before he even plays Origin and with Billy Slater gone for the year because of injury the No.1 jumper in the Australian team is up for grabs.

Greg Inglis shouldn’t be an automatic selection at fullback for Australia. If he was in great form it would be a different story, but he’s not. He’s going reasonably well.

Tedesco is genuinely going great and at 23 there is no point in holding him back. He is a classic running fullback who is currently putting on a show every week for Wests Tigers.

Unfortunately for the Tigers they aren’t winning often enough and have followed victories in the first two rounds with four straight defeats, but their record is not one bit Tedesco’s fault.

He is giving them everything they could want from a fullback to try to get them wins, but there are a few holes in the team in other positions and on top of that the Tigers are making way too many errors.

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They were their own worst enemies in Sunday’s 18-16 loss to Newcastle and even after just six rounds their season is fast approaching a crossroads.

But back to the Test team and while Inglis is the South Sydney fullback and has filled in for an injured Slater before in the Australian team, he doesn’t have a mortgage on the position.

Because there is another great option in Tedesco available, Inglis should be picked for Australia in his old club position of centre.

It’s not like anyone has a mortgage on centre positions in the team at the moment. The last time Australia played in a Test, against New Zealand in Brisbane last May, Will Chambers and Michael Jennings were the centres. The Aussies lost, 26-12.

Inglis was fullback for that game and a return to the centres for him and a debut at fullback for Tedesco would strengthen the Australian team. The all-round attacking threat would be increased.

Don’t forget, the Kiwis have beaten the Aussies the last three times the two teams have met.

It’s not as if Australia don’t have a genuine need to look at possible ways of improving the team, particularly with a Four Nations tournament to be played against New Zealand, England and Scotland at the end of the season.

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If you’re going to try a new player in a key position, then now is a good time.

Australian coach Mal Meninga, who will take the team for the first time in next month’s Test, has stated his preference for seeing how players perform at Origin level first before they are considered for the Test team.

But this shouldn’t be a hard-and-fast rule, mainly because of the nature of the scheduling of representative matches which sees the mid-season Test played before the Origin series.

And Meninga is willing to consider Semi Radradra for Australia even though he can’t first see him play Origin, since the Parramatta winger isn’t eligible for that.

Tedesco for the Australian team is a no-brainer. He shines for the Tigers even though there are some weak links there. Imagine how he would look in the Australian side, playing alongside superstars like Inglis, Johnathan Thurston and Cameron Smith. He would be a sensation.

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