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Well, the moment is almost upon us… Bledisloe 1 is right on our doorstep, as is the announcement of the first Wallabies team since the 3-0 England debacle.
But it’s a case of onwards and upwards, isn’t it?
So we asked you last week to pick your Wallabies team in anticipation of what Michael Cheika will do later this week. And as Roarers do, you responded in a massive way.
Well over 500 responses later in the middle of the Olympics and we have ourselves a team. The Roar’s Wallabies team to play the All Blacks – as voted by the fan majority.
So without further delay, here’s who you selected:
The Roar‘s Wallabies team for Bledisloe 1
1. Scott Sio
2. Stephen Moore
3. Sekope Kepu
4. Rob Simmons
5. Kane Douglas
6. Scott Fardy
7. Michael Hooper
8. David Pocock
9. Will Genia
10. Bernard Foley
11. Adam Ashley-Cooper
12. Matt Giteau
13. Samu Kerevi
14. Drew Mitchell
15. Israel Folau
Replacements
16. Tatafu Polota-Nau
17. Allan Alaalatoa
18. James Slipper
19. Adam Coleman
20. Lopeti Timani
21. Nick Phipps
22. Matt Toomua
23. Dane Haylett-Petty
I’ll get to the selection of the reserves in due course (there was a fair bit of editorial license taken on my part), but let’s talk first about who you selected for the starting XV.
The front row holds few surprises, with perhaps the only one being Allan Alaalatoa earning himself a gig on the bench. Rob Simmons and Kane Douglas are your preferred second rowers. There wasn’t much love for Wallabies favourite Dean Mumm amongst Roarers.
Michael Hooper just pipped David Pocock for the number 7 vote, but Pocock was triumphant in the number 8 vote, with Scott Fardy a banker at 6.
Will Genia was an overwhelming favourite for the halfback position, as were fellow imports Adam Ashley-Cooper, Drew Mitchell and Matt Giteau on the wings and at inside centre.
Bernard Foley holds the gig at five-eighth, with Samu Kerevi earning the second-most votes of the centres to slot in outside Giteau.
Israel obviously nails down the 15.
Now to the replacements, where the props and hooker were obvious bets. Beyond that, I went for one second rower, one back rower, one halfback, one half/centre and one outside back as the preferred slip.
Lopeti Timani earning votes over the number 6 and number 8 positions earned him the spot ahead of fellow contender Sean McMahon. Matt Toomua was voted reasonably high across both the centre and fly-half positions, as was Dane Haylett-Petty in the wing and fullback spots, explaining their positions.
The full data is below.
What do you make of this team Roarers? Is this the one to get it done this weekend against the All Blacks?
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.