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Tuesday July 1, 1:42 PMTurner to make Australia debut against France
Turner replaced his New South Wales team mate Lote Tuqiri who was ruled out after injuring his knee in last weekend's 34-13 first test win in Sydney. Number eight Wycliff Palu was also overlooked because of injury, replaced by Stephen Hoiles, while flanker George Smith and fullback Cameron Shepherd were left out for Phil Waugh and Adam Ashley-Cooper. Wallabies coach Robbie Deans said neither Tuqiri nor Palu's injuries were long-term problems but he decided to err on the side of caution before the Tri-Nations. "We've decided that it's not worth risking further aggravation of their current situations by playing them when they're not quite right," Deans said in a statement on Tuesday. "With Lote's history, in terms of the knee injury he's had previously, we felt it was best to let the joint settle right down, hence the reason for making the call to pull him out now, rather than delaying until later in the week. "Even though the scans we've had done on Cliffy have been clear in terms of any structural damage, he too was still struggling a little bit." The inclusion of Turner completed a remarkable rise for the 21-year-old speedster, who only made his Super 14 debut last season. Turner was overlooked for Australia's squad for last year's World Cup but caught the eye of new coach Deans with his performances for the Waratahs and Australia A. "Lachie has been playing well for Australia A and working hard off the field when he has trained with us. We see this as a good opportunity to get his test career underway," Deans said. Ashley-Cooper and Waugh were promoted to the starting lineup after coming off the bench last weekend while Deans continues to look for the perfect combination before the Tri-Nations. "In both of these instances, the selection doesn't reflect a dissatisfaction at all with what Cameron (Shepherd) and George (Smith) have contributed," Deans said. "It is more a case of taking this opportunity to give two other players game time in our environment, as opposed to sending them elsewhere." 15-Adam Ashley-Cooper, 14-Peter Hynes, 13-Stirling Mortlock (captain), 12-Berrick Barnes, 11-Lachlan Turner, 10-Matt Giteau, 9-Luke Burgess, 8-Stephen Hoiles, 7-Phil Waugh, 6-Rocky Elsom, 5-Nathan Sharpe, 4-James Horwill, 3-Al Baxter, 2-Stephen Moore, 1-Benn Robinson Replacements: 16-Adam Freier, 17-Ben Alexander, 18-Dean Mumm, 19-George Smith, 20-Sam Cordingley, 21-Ryan Cross, 22-Cameron Shepherd. (Reporting by Julian Linden; Editing by Ed Osmond) |
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