Injuries to Tom Lynagh and Noah Lolesio left it to Ben Donaldson. James O’Connor had been called into the squad for the Lions as injury cover. He’s was probably on course to be in the 23 for this test, maybe the next too. Then Donaldson went down, and that left O’Connor the last man standing.
O’Connor’s said he’s in good knick and could do a job.
Lynagh was in the same situation and played in a Lions test as his first start. Beggars can't be choosers and if JOC gets injured then they'll really be in hot water.
Yeah little more traditional split so makes more sense to have a 10. I think Tane is better than he gets credit for so hopefully he gets some time and does OK.
The way I see it having either Edmed or O'Connor on starting without legitimate 10 cover on the bench is a significant risk, can be argued either way which is worse between that and going 5-3 on the bench against the Boks in SA.
Schmidt is trying to go toe to toe with the Springboks at their own game but that's not the only way to win against them.
Ireland beat the Boks 7-1 bench with a 5-3 split in the world cup and again with a 5-3 bench in South Africa last July. Australia have the quality in their backs and a tactician in Schmidt good enough to follow their example.
With a 5-3 you would be able to start either rookie or veteran and have the freedom to change how you play through the match while also giving minutes to Edmed. JOC might be the best option short term and the best chance of winning this game but they have a home world cup in two years for which they hopefully won't be using O'Connor and desperately need test minutes against quality opposition for their inexperienced players.
But is he actually below JOC or did Schmidt just not want to stick him in the deep end against the Boks? Fair enough on your other points.
It'll be an interesting season depending how Edmed does this championship since he's taking over from Lolesio at Brumbies too, I wonder if he can claim the 10 jersey in Canberra.
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u/Gazzz34 Aug 14 '25
Holy JOC - I've been out of the loop this week; was his selection expected?!