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Wallabies head coach Les Kiss made minimal changes to his squad for the Springboks in Perth on Sunday, September 27, bringing in three new players.
Jordan Petaia, who has not played for the Wallabies since 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, comes back together Force top five Harry McLaughlin-Phillips and Queensland Red Zane Nonggorr’s own.
Petaia spent the 2026 season in French Top 14 club Perpignan after signing a contract with Urayasu D-Rocks.
Reds outside back Filipo Daugunu and prop Massimo De Lutiis miss out due to workload management, while Dylan Pietsch is injured.
With Reds playmaker Carter Gordon out through injury, McLaughlin-Phillips was called into cover, while Tom Lynagh and James O’Connor were overlooked by the new Wallabies head coach.
When announcing his squad, Kiss credited Petaya’s work while away from the Wallabies.
“We have a lot of good three players here in the country. Let’s try to get a look at them all. It was an ideal opportunity to see Jordan; he’s been out of the system for a couple of years,” Kiss told reporters.
“He played in two World Cups; we just wanted to have contact with him, to come and train with us, to see how he is doing.
“We haven’t picked that team yet, but we’ve picked the squad, so it was just a good opportunity to see Jordan back in the environment and have a good look at us with the new coaching structure and all that stuff.”
The new Wallabies head coach detailed where the 26-year-old could feature after proving his versatility over a number of seasons.
“He’s been out of the Australian system for a while, but it was important to just expand our understanding of what’s available and what they look like,” Kiss said.
“There are a lot of good backs playing here in our country at the moment, and that’s why the Super AUS is important to us, so we can watch these players and watch them in action and keep an eye on them.
“Positionally, we know he’s covered the wing, 15 and 13 in the past, so when he hits the ground with us we’ll have a good look at him, but he’ll certainly be in one of those positions, probably the back three I’d say, at this stage.”
The former Reds head coach is aware of the challenge ahead, knowing his side must rise to the occasion.
“We’ve had some good, intense matches, but we’re definitely going to another level when we play the Springboks in two weeks,” Kiss added.
“We’re aware of that, we know we have to be better in certain areas and we’re working hard to make sure we can improve on that. They’ll be in our backyard so we’ll be ready to fight.”
Wallabies squad for Springboks:
Strikers: Allan Alaalatoa, Angus Bell, Charlie Cale, Josh Canham, Tom Hooper, Isaac Kailea, Fraser McReight, Josh Nasser, Zane Nonggorr, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Billy Pollard, Aidan Ross, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Lachlan Shaw, Ta Jerem Tizzano, Ta Jerem Tizzano
back: Jock Campbell, Ben Donaldson, Isaac Henry, Len Ikitau, Max Jorgensen, Ryan Lonergan, Tate McDermott, Harry McLaughlin-Phillips, Declan Meredith, Hunter Paisami, Jordan Petaia, Harry Potter, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Kalani Thomas, Tom Wright.
Unavailable: Josh Flook, Langi Gleeson, Carter Gordon, Jake Gordon, Will Skelton, Matt Philip, Blake Schoupp, Henry Robertson, Pete Samu.
