{"id":696506,"date":"2026-05-26T21:45:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T21:45:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/696506\/"},"modified":"2026-05-26T21:45:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T21:45:21","slug":"wallabies-facing-same-selection-headache-as-state-of-origins-nsw-blues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/696506\/","title":{"rendered":"Wallabies facing same selection headache as State of Origin’s NSW Blues"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was arguably the hardest selection decision NSW Blues coach Laurie Daley had to make when choosing his squad for State of Origin I.<\/p>\n

Should he keep Dylan Edwards at fullback or recall ex-captain James Tedesco for his first Origin appearance since Game 1 in 2024?<\/p>\n

Both had presented compelling cases this NRL season, but Tedesco was given the nod for Wednesday’s series opener against the Queensland Maroons at Stadium Australia.<\/p>\n

Not surprisingly, Daley described Edwards’s omission as a “tough call”.<\/p>\n

In the rival rugby code, Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt is facing a similar question asked of Daley when he picks his squad for July’s Nations Championship Tests.<\/p>\n

Who is his best option at fullback?<\/p>\n

Tom Wright was Schmidt’s preferred choice until he suffered an ACL injury in the Wallabies’ 30-22 loss to the Springboks in Cape Town last August.<\/p>\n

The injury ended his 2025 season, and he only returned to the playing field for the ACT Brumbies in Super Rugby Pacific last month.<\/p>\n

It is not surprising Wright is yet to recapture his best form as it takes time to recover from ACL injuries, both physically and emotionally.<\/p>\n

\"Tom<\/p>\n

Tom Wright was the Wallabies’ first-choice fullback until injuring his knee last year. (Getty Images: Cameron Spencer)<\/p>\n

He was solid in the Brumbies’ 21-14 win over the NSW Waratahs in Sydney but was outshone by his opposite number, Max Jorgensen.<\/p>\n

Jorgensen described fullback as his “natural position” in the lead-up to Friday night’s match.<\/p>\n

He beat Wright in a one-on-one contest late in the second half, using minimal room down the left edge to find his way to the goal line for a brilliant try.<\/p>\n

The moment surely would have given Schmidt food for thought, especially as he started Jorgensen at fullback in four of the nine Tests that followed Wright’s injury last year.<\/p>\n

If fully fit, Jorgensen will be one of the first picked in Schmidt’s squad, but it remains to be seen whether he will play wing or fullback.<\/p>\n

\"Max<\/p>\n

Max Jorgensen scored an individual try for the Waratahs against the Brumbies. (AAP: Dean Lewins)<\/p>\n

Jock Campbell’s form for the Queensland Reds has added further intrigue to the debate over who wears the number 15 jersey for the Wallabies.<\/p>\n

Campbell, who made his Test debut in 2022, showed he is elusive in attack when he scored the match-winning try for the Reds in their nervous 33-31 defeat of the last-placed Moana Pasifika in Auckland on Saturday.<\/p>\n

He also had two try assists, helping set up wingers Tim Ryan and Treyvon Pritchard for five-pointers.<\/p>\n

Just as Daley was forced to make a difficult call when he named his Blues squad, Schmidt has a selection headache, albeit one he will welcome.<\/p>\n

Brumbies clinch finals berth<\/p>\n

The Brumbies were in no mood to celebrate qualifying for the finals following their win over the Waratahs.<\/p>\n

Coach Stephen Larkham’s demeanour in the post-match media conference did not hide the fact he expected his squad to have already secured a finals berth ahead of round 15.<\/p>\n

The Brumbies were sitting inside the top three on the Super Rugby Pacific standings earlier this season.<\/p>\n

But their finals hopes were dealt a blow when they posted a 1-4 (win-loss) return across a five-match stretch, before consecutive victories over the Western Force and Waratahs meant they were guaranteed to advance to the play-offs.<\/p>\n

“There’s a number of games that could have put us in a different situation coming into this game,” Larkham said after the Waratahs match.<\/p>\n

\"David<\/p>\n

Brumbies inside centre David Feliuai (right) helped his side get past the Waratahs. (Getty Images: Cameron Spencer)<\/p>\n

The Brumbies are fifth on the standings, but where they finish will be decided following this weekend’s final round of the regular season.<\/p>\n

A bonus-point win over Moana in Canberra on Saturday night gives them a slim chance of snatching third and securing a home qualifying final, however they will also need other results to go their way.<\/p>\n

Sixth place, though, is still a possibility if the Brumbies lose and the Reds defeat Fijian Drua in Brisbane on Friday.<\/p>\n

The Reds need a win over the Drua to have any chance of finishing as high as fourth.<\/p>\n

Reds welcome back key personnel<\/p>\n

The Reds’ win over Moana was unconvincing, but it did help them reach the finals.<\/p>\n

It also gave Tate McDermott and Josh Canham the opportunity to gain much-needed match fitness after lengthy spells on the sideline due to injury.<\/p>\n

McDermott had hamstring surgery late last year and was not considered for selection until the Moana match.<\/p>\n

The Reds had been well served at scrum half through Kalani Thomas and Louis Werchon during McDermott’s absence.<\/p>\n

But McDermott’s leadership ability had been missed.<\/p>\n

Coach Les Kiss must feel reassured having McDermott, Fraser McReight and Harry Wilson on the field at the same time, given their experience in captaining the Reds and Wallabies.<\/p>\n

The trio have a crucial role to play when the Reds contest their second straight finals series under the top-six format.<\/p>\n

\"Tate<\/p>\n

Tate McDermott made his long-awaited return for the Reds. (Getty Images: Masanori Udagawa)<\/p>\n

Canham’s availability is timely as the Reds’ attacking line-out has struggled this season.<\/p>\n

The Reds won 74 per cent of their line-out throws in the five matches before Canham’s return.<\/p>\n

Canham was second in Super Rugby Pacific last season for most line-out wins with 76.<\/p>\n

He was the Reds’ main target against Moana, with the visitors’ line-out showing improvement despite losing three of their throws.<\/p>\n

Force, Tahs lick their wounds<\/p>\n

The Force host the Waratahs in Perth on Saturday night, with the result to decide which team finishes higher than the other on the standings.<\/p>\n

This will be cold comfort to whoever comes out on top, as both the Force and Waratahs had ambitions of making the finals.<\/p>\n

The Force defeated the Drua 19-15 at home last Saturday, but the failure to secure a bonus point meant they were no longer in play-offs contention.<\/p>\n

“It’s on us. We’ve got to put ourselves in better positions at the end of the year to do things on our own terms,” Force skipper Jeremy Williams said after the Drua match.<\/p>\n

“It’s really disappointing.”<\/p>\n

\"Jeremy<\/p>\n

Jeremy Williams (left) reflected on the Force’s failure to make the finals. (Getty Images: Paul Kane)<\/p>\n

Williams was highlighting the fact the eighth-placed Force left themselves too much work to do in the second half of the regular season.<\/p>\n

They reached the midway point of the competition with a 2-5 record.<\/p>\n

Winning four of their past six matches gave them a glimmer of hope, however they are left to reflect on what might have been.<\/p>\n

The Waratahs are in the same boat, with their finals chances evaporating over the weekend.<\/p>\n

They are seventh with a 5-8 return through 13 matches.<\/p>\n

Following the loss to the Brumbies, Waratahs coach Dan McKellar was adamant his squad had made progress during his two seasons in charge.<\/p>\n

But McKellar acknowledged the Waratahs’ on-field results did not support his claim they were moving forward.<\/p>\n

The 2027 season shapes as a make-or-break scenario for McKellar, who will be in the final year of his contract.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It was arguably the hardest selection decision NSW Blues coach Laurie Daley had to make when choosing his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":696507,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[58864,64,63,3925,23423,9366,1736,158,2733,192994,94,701,13385,13506,760,159,2633,85,6405,48013,2500,33009,11229],"class_list":["post-696506","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-act-brumbies","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-blues","tag-maroons","tag-max-jorgensen","tag-new-zealand","tag-nrl","tag-nsw","tag-nsw-blues","tag-qld","tag-queensland","tag-queensland-maroons","tag-reds","tag-rugby","tag-rugby-league","tag-rugby-union","tag-sports","tag-state-of-origin","tag-super-rugby-pacific","tag-wallabies","tag-waratahs","tag-western-force"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696506","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=696506"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/696506\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/696507"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=696506"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=696506"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=696506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}