{"id":838098,"date":"2026-08-01T16:17:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T16:17:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/838098\/"},"modified":"2026-08-01T16:17:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T16:17:11","slug":"wallabies-captain-gives-verdict-on-les-kiss-arrival-ahead-of-double-japan-clash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/838098\/","title":{"rendered":"Wallabies captain gives verdict on Les Kiss’ arrival ahead of double Japan clash"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wallabies captain Harry Wilson has revealed the impact new head coach Les Kiss has had on the squad as they prepare for the first of their two matches against Japan<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Kiss arrived in camp recently and has had limited time to make an impact, but his captain has already noticed a change within the squad. \u201cIt\u2019s been really exciting for us,\u201d Wilson<\/a> told the press on Thursday.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s had such good energy coming in, and you can see his excitement and just his passion to be coaching his country. I know all the boys have loved that. They have really jumped on that passion, and he is enabling everyone to be themselves and be happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wilson has retained his captaincy under Kiss<\/a>, but knows that the title doesn\u2019t guarantee him a starting spot. \u201cEven when you are captain, you\u2019ve got to be performing day to day. You\u2019re performing at the weekend to hold that position,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo for me, with my mindset, nothing really changes because it\u2019s all about earning it the next week through performance, through leadership, on and off the field.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 26-year-old, who was first made captain in 2024, has revealed that earning the new coach\u2019s trust has filled him with confidence. \u201cI really appreciated it when Les gave me the call and asked if I wanted to stay on. Because it\u2019s a new coach and if he wanted to go in a different direction, I wouldn\u2019t have got in his way because it is his team.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo he definitely gave me a little bit more confidence walking here, knowing I am the leader and I\u2019ve got a lead from the start. But in saying that, nothing really changes. I\u2019ve got to last the test.\u201d<\/p>\n

Springboks: Siya Kolisi reveals the post-playing career option that would drive him \u2018crazy\u2019 and names \u2018best place to be\u2019 when \u2018going through a tough time\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n

Kiss reveals Zac Lomax is still in the picture<\/p>\n

Another player looking to earn the head coach\u2019s affections is rugby league convert Zac Lomax.\u00a0Although Lomax has recently agreed to join the PNG\u00a0Chiefs\u00a0from the 2028 season, Kiss hasn\u2019t ruled out a brief stint with the Wallabies before his exit. The World Cup is just over the horizon, and the talented winger could be a very real option with a few more matches under his belt.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s hungry to try and do what he can in the game,\u201d Kiss revealed.<\/a> \u201cHe\u2019s in the system, and I\u2019ve spoken to Simon [Cron] on this assignment as well. He\u2019s keen to get him back. He\u2019s getting closer to being ready and will unleash him in Super AUS to get a few games to see where he is.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe wants to find out where he is as well, and he\u2019s going to go gung-ho for it. I know that. So he\u2019s in the picture as they all are. It\u2019s a competitive position, though, and that\u2019s the important thing. But if he comes really good, it makes it hard to make some selections there, which I need. I need it to be tough to make those selections.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got a lot of good men in the back three, but if he gets better and better and puts pressure on those guys to be better, then I\u2019m all for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

READ MORE:\u00a0All Blacks: Codie Taylor reveals what he expects from South Africa\u2019s URC teams and gives blunt verdict on their Super Rugby absence<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Wallabies captain Harry Wilson has revealed the impact new head coach Les Kiss has had on the squad…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":838099,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[567],"tags":[64,63,818,1182,92253,44,760,85],"class_list":["post-838098","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-rugby","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-home-page","tag-internationals","tag-les-kiss","tag-news","tag-rugby","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838098","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=838098"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838098\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/838099"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=838098"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=838098"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=838098"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}