Australia to face Super Rugby XV ahead of Bledisloe Cup opener

Australia will step up their preparations for the Bledisloe Cup opener as they are set to face an Aussie Super Rugby Selection side next Friday at Leichhardt Oval in Sydney.

The Super Rugby Selection side will be guided by Women’s Sevens coach John Manenti and assisted by Australian Men’s coach Tim Walsh and Melbourne Rebels assistant Kevin Foote and the game will not have a Television Match Official (TMO) involved.

Australia will be heading into the Rugby Championship tournament following a 2-1 series defeat to Ireland at home in the June internationals and will be looking into the groove straightaway when they face All Blacks on 18th August in Sydney.

“We were keen to have more Super Rugby teams playing for longer, obviously, and if we look at the last two years we just want to keep the intensity of footy up,” said Wallabies head coach Michael Cheika to Rugby.com.au.

“Spending five weeks on the sideline before a Bledisloe Test match is not what we want ideally. We want guys to play footy.

“It’s not just about the contact, because you can get all that in training. But just the little things. The pressure in front of a crowd, the referee telling you what to do, the dressing room build up, all those things. The mental side of footy."

The last time Australia went on to clinch the Rugby Championship tournament was in 2015.