MELBOURNE : ACT Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham is in no hurry to restore Wallabies halves Noah Lolesio and Nic White to his starting 15, having been impressed with the lesser lights running the engine-room.
The Brumbies continued their perfect start in Super Rugby Pacific with a 25-20 win over the Auckland Blues over the weekend, with Larkham praising flyhalf Jack Debreczeni and scrumhalf Ryan Lonergan for building a solid platform.
Larkham has had Lolesio and White, strong candidates to start in Eddie Jones’s Wallabies at this year’s World Cup, running off the bench in the second half as high impact “finishers”.
He said the ploy was working well and not about managing the Wallabies’ playing load in a World Cup year.
“It’s not … managing their minutes,” he told reporters.
“I like what they’re bringing off the bench. But equally I like what Ryan and Jack were doing at the start of both games.
“I thought they’ve been excellent with their leadership, their control of the game.
“And then really impressed with Noah and Whitey.
“Those two were on at the back end of the game when it mattered the most and controlled it, found a way to win.”
Larkham is enjoying early success in his second stint as Brumbies’ head coach, having guided the side as a co-coach with Laurie Fisher in 2014 and as the sole man in charge from 2015-17.
A week after bursting the New South Wales Waratahs’ bubble in 31-25 away win in Sydney, the Brumbies’ impressive victory over the New Zealand powerhouse was hailed by Australian rugby media.
New Zealand teams, led by the reigning champion Canterbury Crusaders, have dominated the competition since the Waratahs claimed the last title for Australia in 2014.
Beaten by the Blues in last year’s semi-finals, the Brumbies are again rated Australia’s best chance of ending the drought.
Not that Larkham or captain James Slipper were getting carried away as they face a short turn-around before playing the Queensland Reds back in Canberra on Saturday.
“Six-day turn-arounds are hard coming off two games like the Waratahs and the Blues, big physical encounters there,” said Larkham.
“It’s going to be a challenge for us, no doubt about that.”
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