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NSW Waratahs winger Lachie Turner is expecting a strong display from Brumbies superstar Matt Giteau in Saturday’s must-win Super 14 Australian rugby derby.
Neither side can afford to lose the crunch clash at ANZ Stadium, especially the sixth-placed Brumbies, who will start the game one spot and three points behind their local rivals.
Defeat to the Hurricanes in Canberra last week has left the Brumbies with very little wriggle room and Turner expects Andy Friend’s side to fire up following a disappointing performance.
“We are expecting a lot from them, they are going to be pretty tough and pretty brutal,” Turner said on Monday.
“They are going to try and attack us out wide at the wide breakdowns and, obviously, (fullback) Julian Huxley at the back has been giving them an awful lot, so we are expecting them to come out firing.
“Matt Giteau, I’m expecting him to come out and have a big one.”
Although Giteau scored a try against the Hurricanes, the Brumbies’ prize backline recruit has sparkled only sporadically for his new team.
While the Brumbies have struggled for fluency in their backline, Turner said the Waratahs’ back division still had a long way to go and needed to be more consistent.
Wallabies winger Turner made it clear there was bad blood between the local rivals and a win over the Brumbies would give the Waratahs special pleasure.
“There’s no team I enjoy beating more and probably, if you had quick poll amongst the blokes, they would feel exactly the same,” Turner said.
“It’s just the rivalry, how close we are. There’s always a feeling of bad blood between the two sides.”
Turner, who earlier this year became the youngest Waratah to tally 50 caps, revealed he came “pretty close” to signing with the Brumbies a couple of years ago.
“I have a lot of friends down there, but at the end of the day, I made the decision to stay with the Waratahs,” Turner said.
“I grew up always wanting to be a Waratah, so I’m pretty happy with that choice and looking forward to hopefully proving it was a smart decision, on Saturday night.”
Waratahs coach Chris Hickey said if injured front rowers, prop Benn Robinson (forearm) and hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau (shoulder), continued to improve they had a distinct chance of playing on Saturday.
He said he would name a squad of 24 or 25 on Wednesday and would give the two front rowers till Friday to prove their fitness.
He anticipated two possible changes to the Brumbies back line, expecting Stirling Mortlock to return at outside centre and Josh Valentine at halfback.
Hickey felt the intensity of the Waratahs pre-bye clash against the Crusaders would stand them in good stead this weekend and said playing a home game away from their traditional Sydney Football Stadium headquarters wasn’t a big deal.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.