Watch every second of the 2025 Autumn Nations Series live and on demand via Stan Sport.<\/a><\/p>\nThe new Queensland Reds signing will add to his eight caps after bursting onto the scene, debuting against the Springboks.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s one of two changes to the starting backline, with Corey Toole coming back in for the rested Max Jorgensen.<\/p>\n
Toole comes in for his first Test in Europe, with the impressive Harry Potter and Andrew Kellaway retaining their spots in the back three.<\/p>\n
Schmidt has also named Pete Samu for his return to the Test arena, his first appearance since the 2023 Rugby Championship.<\/p>\n
New Waratahs signing Samu is joined on the bench by two-time John Eales Medalist Rob Valetini, allowing Tom Hooper to start.<\/p>\n
Hooper rejoined the squad at the start of the week after missing the games against Japan and England after he joined Premiership club Exeter.<\/p>\n
Club teammate and reigning John Eales Medalist Len Ikitau will wait another week before being reintroduced into the side, as Schmidt maintains the midfield combination of Hunter Paisami and Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii.<\/p>\n
Further changes see the return of hooker Matt Faessler after he impressed for Australia A last month.<\/p>\n
Faessler partners Angus Bell and Taniela Tupou, his first appearance since the British & Irish Lions tour, after dealing with injuries throughout the Rugby Championship.<\/p>\n
On the bench, Aidan Ross and Zane Nonggorr have been added to the forward replacements alongside Billy Pollard.<\/p>\n
Ross debuted for the Wallabies against Japan, with Nonggorr making his starting debut during that game.<\/p>\n
The Wallabies are looking to rebound after their previous defeat to Italy in 2022, ending an 18-game winning streak.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe group have rolled up their sleeves and had a solid week of preparation after dusting themselves off from what was a frustrating performance last weekend,” Schmidt said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know we\u2019ll need to be better on Saturday against the Azzurri. They’ll be well prepared and confident after their highly competitive showing in the Six Nations earlier this year.”<\/p>\n
Wallabies team to play Italy at Bluenergy Stadium in Udine on Saturday
\nNovember 8 at 6:40pm GMT\/4:40am AEDT (Sunday)<\/p>\n
1. Angus Bell (47 Tests) – #940; Hunters Hill Rugby Club<\/p>\n
2. Matt Faessler (15 Tests) – #969; USQ Saints<\/p>\n
3. Taniela Tupou (66 Tests) – #917; Brothers Rugby<\/p>\n
4. Nick Frost (35 Tests) – #953; Hornsby Lions<\/p>\n
5. Jeremy Williams (22 Tests) \u2013 #973; Wahroonga Tigers<\/p>\n
6. Tom Hooper (19 Tests) – #964; Bathurst Bulldogs<\/p>\n
7. Fraser McReight (36 Tests) – #937; Albany Creek Brumbies<\/p>\n
8. Harry Wilson (c) (33 Tests) – #933; Gunnedah Red Devils<\/p>\n
9. Jake Gordon (34 Tests) – #925; Canterbury Juniors<\/p>\n
10. Carter Gordon (8 Tests) – #967; Sunshine Coast Grammar School<\/p>\n
11. Harry Potter (8 Tests) – #989; Moorabbin Rams<\/p>\n
12. Hunter Paisami (34 Tests) – #932; Harlequin Rugby Club<\/p>\n
13. Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii (15 Tests) – #988; The Kings School<\/p>\n
14. Corey Toole (5 Tests) – #992; Wagga Crows<\/p>\n
15. Andrew Kellaway (47 Tests) – #943; Hunters Hill Rugby Club<\/p>\n
Substitutes<\/p>\n
16. Billy Pollard (18 Tests) – #958; Lindfield Junior Rugby<\/p>\n
17. Aidan Ross (1 Test) – #994; Bond University<\/p>\n
18. Zane Nonggorr (17 Tests) – #966; Gold Coast Eagles<\/p>\n
19. Rob Valetini (59 Tests) – #929; Harlequin Rugby Club<\/p>\n
20. Pete Samu (33 Tests) – #920; Moorabbin Rams<\/p>\n
21. Ryan Lonergan (3 Tests) – #933; Tuggeranong Vikings<\/p>\n
22. Tane Edmed (6 Tests) – #990; West Harbour Juniors<\/p>\n
23. Filipo Daugunu (17 Tests) – #931, Wests Bulldogs<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt has named flyhalf Carter Gordon for his Rugby return against Italy on Sunday (AEDT)…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":266454,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,760,85,2500],"class_list":{"0":"post-266453","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-rugby","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-rugby","11":"tag-sports","12":"tag-wallabies"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=266453"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266453\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/266454"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=266453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=266453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=266453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}