Tufour to miss Springboks rematch, Wallabies suffer triple injury blow

Joe Schmidt’s hopes of overturning the Wallabies’ worst defeat to the Springboks at home next Saturday have been dealt a major blow after three players, including winger Filippo Daugnu, were ruled out of the Rugby Championship clash in Perth.

After suffering a 26-point defeat in front of 52,019 fans at Suncorp Stadium, Schmidt is without winger Daugnu (broken fibula) and Nick Frost and Jeremy Williams (both concussions) on the sidelines.

Frost and Williams are likely to feature in the upcoming two-Test tour to Argentina, but Daugunu’s injury means he is likely to miss the remainder of the Rugby Championship.

Injuries have hit the Wallabies’ squad again, with Reds new signing Josh Cannum being called up.

Strength-based Test forwards Tom Robertson and Sam Carter will also join the Wallabies, providing Schmidt’s young squad with additional resources after a fierce battle to finish second in every category against the back-to-back world champions.

The Wallabies are also unlikely to bring back big-name backer Taniela Tupou, who recently lost his father.

In particular, the absence of Toupo is a huge blow at a time when the Wallabies are struggling in the scrum.

Allan Ala-Alatoa struggled up front against the Springboks and the Wallabies are unlikely to recall Taniela Tupou. (Photo: Matt Roberts/Getty Images)

A Wallabies scrum without a top-scorer felt like roller skating.

A lack of attacking drive, penetration from set pieces and overall poor form have reduced the Wallabies to a siege-style side.

While Schmidt has few attacking options, the Wallabies at least have a replacement for Daugnu, with Marika Koroibete set to return to the left wing.

The only overseas Wallaby player included in Schmidt’s 36-man squad, Koroibete was controversially left out of the squad after the two-time John Eyers Medal winner was deemed not to be physically fit.

But given the physical demands, Schmidt is very likely to provide the 32-year-old with punching power and defensive prowess on the wing.

On the other hand, Schmidt is likely to bring in Tom Hooper to add some energy and versatility to the forward pack.

It is not yet known who will replace Frost, who was one of the team’s best players during the Wallabies’ 7-33 defeat, while Angus Blythe was left out of the starting line-up against the Boks after being used throughout the July Test matches.

Blythe and his new teammate Canham, who lost to the Hurricanes in the quarterfinals, showed their exceptional physicality and level of play and will likely compete for a spot on the 23-man squad.

Nick Frost will miss the Wallabies’ return match against the Springboks on August 10, 2024 after sustaining a head injury at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. (Photo: Matt Roberts/Getty Images)

It is not yet known whether 23-year-old star player Angus Bell, who has just returned from a foot injury, will be fit to return.

Meanwhile, Noah Loretio will be under pressure to keep his place after another sloppy performance as the Wallabies flyhalf struggled to keep his place after the forward pack was completely decimated.

But the Wallabies were not helped by a wasteful first 20 minutes, with Jake Gordon and Loretio both winning the ball in the Springboks’ half.

Schmidt said he wasn’t going to throw his toys out of bed and suddenly look overseas for answers, but was confident that the people he had originally chosen could make some improvements.

“I think there are people out there who can improve what they’re delivering,” Schmidt said.

“We need a long-term plan, even if it doesn’t improve until next Saturday.

“We have a much younger team than South Africa. We’ve played far less, we’ve had far less experience. So I think if you change too much, it’s very hard to build cohesion because when you go out there in a game like that, you’re very interdependent and you have to make sure everyone knows their role.

“I’m a realist and I know that I can’t suddenly catch up to my opponents, get ahead of them and make them better players, but I know that I have to improve myself for next week.”

Despite a heavy defeat in their opening match, Wallabies rookie Luke Rymer says he still has faith his team can bounce back against the Springboks.

“There are moments during the game when you think you can win,” Reimer said.

“It’s a question of who shows up. You saw what Ireland did a few weeks ago. Like I said, it’s a question of who shows up.

“I would say there are certainly opportunities surrounding some of their weaknesses. We need to look closely at how we can attack them and implement them this week.”