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Wallabies coach Robbie Deans watches players warm up before the game with Scotland this week. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
Men At Work

Deans to call on fresh legs for Welsh test

The Wallabies were beaten by Scotland in Newcastle earlier this week.

ROBBIE DEANS WILL put his faith in ‘fresh legs and a fresh mindset’ ahead of Saturday’s opening Test against Wales.

But chief playmaker Quade Cooper will not be among those to receive a call-up to face the Six Nations champions in Brisbane. Deans will finalise his 22-man squad for the first of three Tests against Warren Gatland’s side on Thursday afternoon.

Multiple changes are expected after the coach rested several starters for Tuesday’s calamitous 9-6 loss to Scotland in Newcastle. However, Deans made it clear Cooper would not be risked at any stage during the Wales series as he continues his comeback from knee surgery.

“No there’s no chance of that because it would be negligent,” Deans said when asked if Cooper will be recalled to the squad for the Wales series. ”He’s not ready and he understands that, it’s not worth the risk because you could compromise not only him in the long run but also us.”

Deans is not expecting any of his injured stars such as Kurtley Beale to return this weekend and confirmed bruised egos were the only fresh injuries sustained against the Scots.

The coach concedes the Welsh will be buoyed by the Wallabies’ lacklustre showing against Scotland.

“They’re going to be very excited at what’s coming no doubt about it,” he said. ”They’re very conscious of the fact this series is a precursor to the (2013 British and Irish Lions) series and their coach is the Lions coach so if they do a very good job in this instance they’ll get an inside lane.

“It will really enhance their chances of selection for the Lions tour and everyone wants to be on the Lions tour, you only get one in a rugby playing lifetime, a lot of very good players never get that opportunity.”

Deans said he expected Wales to stick to their own guns, and not play direct rugby like Scotland did to overhaul a Wallabies outfit that has endured a recent heavy workload.

“The conditions are likely to be different and the Welsh side play a distinct style of game so it will be a different contest,” he said. ”There’ll be tactics and it wouldn’t surprise me if the Welsh, in the knowledge that we have had to play two games already this week, if they don’t adapt their tactics to make the most of that so that will be interesting.

“There’s a significant number of the group who will have to back up who will have to recover first, so we have the conundrum of recovery for those blokes but also preparation for the weekend, so that’s going to be a bit of a juggling act and it will impact on how we prepare.

“It’s not going to be high on volume or high on intensity because it just can’t be because we’ll be a spent force before the weekend, so adapting to that is going to be important but also making sure we make some progress around those elements of cohesion that were evidently lacking.”

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