Wallabies coach Eddie Jones conceded it was “a concern” to be taking Carter Gordon in to the World Cup as his first selection No.10 after a horror present 41-17 loss to France within the closing match earlier than the match which continued a winless begin to his tenure.
Discipline additionally proved to be a serious challenge as soon as in opposition to the Australians conceding 14 penalties in a fifth straight defeat in 2023.
Gordon, 22, has been backed by Jones to get the job finished within the match because the first-choice and solely five-eighth within the squad after veteran Quade Cooper was neglected.
Given the goalkicking duties at Stade de France, he missed the possibility so as to add 10 factors to the Australian rating and Jones didn’t draw back from his efficiency being a problem.
“It’s 100% a concern. But all we can do is work with the young kid,” Jones stated.
“We’ve got young kids in this team and we’re backing them, and he’ll get better.”
Gordon was considered one of 12 gamers in Australia’s matchday squad with 10 caps or fewer however Jones was adamant his staff may flip issues round for his or her opening World Cup conflict with minnows Georgia on September 10.
“Within the camp we’ve got a fair bit of confidence,” Jones insisted.
“Obviously we’d like to have a better win/loss record but we’ve re-established the team. We’ve taken away all the leadership that was there previously. We’ve got a new leadership team in place. We’re trying to play a different way.
“The results haven’t been good. It hasn’t been good enough. I’m not hiding away from that but we do have a longer-term plan in terms of the World Cup and that’s what we’re here for.
“We’re going through the process of becoming a good team.
“We’ve got to keep believing and working hard and it’ll come. It might be in two weeks’ time against Georgia. It might be three weeks against Fiji. It might be four weeks against Wales. It might be five weeks against Portugal. We don’t know when it’s going to come.”
Halfback Tate McDermott stated his staff have been “letting themselves down” with poor self-discipline and it was as much as them to repair the issues. .
“There were a couple of penalties that just relieved pressure and against a team like France, with the skill of their backs, we just gifted them field position and to their credit they capitalised on those errors,” he stated..
“The solutions have got to come from us – Eddie is doing his best but we‘re letting ourselves down out there.
“We‘ve got two weeks to find a solution for Georgia because they’re a bloody good side so we’ve got to make sure we front there.”
The Wallabies scored three tries in opposition to to France‘s 4 with NRL convert star Suliasi Vunivalu, who was a shock World Cup choice, scoring a attempt in his finest efficiency for the Wallabies.
But he additionally obtained a yellow card early within the second half after getting tangled at a ruck and pinged for going off his toes.
Source: www.news.com.au
