Wallabies coach Dave Rennie has described James O’Connor as a “frontrunner” to start at five-eighth against England while keeping the door ajar for Quade Cooper.
Rennie spoke to reporters on the Gold Coast on Tuesday after details of the three-Test series against England were revealed.
Cooper took advantage of O’Connor’s injury last year to ignite a Wallabies winning streak in one of the great Australian rugby comeback stories.
“James has been excellent, very influential in the form of the Reds which is great to see,” Rennie said.
“He had a big year last year for the Reds as well and then got injured prior to the French series and took a long time to come back from that. So he’s certainly a frontrunner but Quade’s still an option for us. He was excellent last year.”
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Rennie also name dropped injured youngsters Noah Lolesio and Ben Donaldon as No.10 options and both are in camp with the Wallabies.
Rugby Australia’s new eligibility laws allow Rennie to pick up to three overseas-based players for each series or tournament.
Japan-based Cooper, Samu Kerevi, and Marika Koroibete loom as likely options to add punch to Australia’s backline.
“Who we bring in will probably depend on how things go over the next few weeks,” Rennie said.
“If we get a run of injuries in a certain spot then that might become more of a priority. We’re keen to pick as many as we can from here because we’ve got the most influence over those guys. But certainly good to have an option overseas.”
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Rennie described fullback, lock and hooker as areas which would give the selectors serious headaches in the coming months.
Jordan Petaia, Tom Banks, Jock Campbell, Reece Hodge and the returning Kurtley Beale are all options.
“He (Beale) will be available because he has signed for the Waratahs next year and committed to us,” Rennie said.
“He has a hamstring injury at the moment so the severity of that and how much footy he gets prior to the English series may dictate that.”
Rennie believes the standard of Australia’s Super Rugby teams has improved this year, particularly from a fitness perspective.
“Certainly from a national perspective, our boys are very fit. The skillset has improved heaps but we want it to be better. Game awareness has been a big focus and we think that’s developing, but we still have more room in there.”
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