Wallabies head coach Michael Cheika has admitted he will try and talk Saracens lock Will Skelton into playing for the national side at the Rugby World Cup in Japan next month.
Saracens have yet to receive any contact
from Rugby Australia, with director of rugby Mark McCall claiming at the end of
last season that the monster lock had signed a new contract. That deal is
believed to have made so that Skelton could cover England internationals Maro
Itoje and George Kruis while they travel to Japan.
However, despite Saracens stance that he
will be staying in Europe, Cheika hasn’t ruled out Skelton being included in
his final 31-man squad which he names on Friday.
“The team gets picked soon, so if he wants to come home he needs to get on the phone pretty quick. I have coached him here at the Waratahs and he was selected in the last World Cup team, so he knows what it’s about, he knows what it means and he will make the call that will best reflect how he is feeling,” he said.
Cheika confirmed that there will be calls
over the next couple of days to see what is possible with Skelton but admits
that it will not be easy to get him into the squad.
“(We will make some) realistic phone calls over there to get a final opinion and see if he wants to be involved or not. It’s not just a decision based on the World Cup, it’s also the long-term about where he plays his footy. It’s a big decision for him as well. Rugby Australia has got a good set of rules that give an opportunity to players who want to come home to have a bit of the best of both worlds,” he added.
Rugby Australia’s Giteau Rule means that
players outside of Australia must have 60 test caps to their name and have
played seven years of Super Rugby to continue to be picked for the national
side.
However, for Skelton, who does not tick the criteria boxes to be eligible to play for the national team and must sign a contract with an Aussie side to be considered for selection.
Cheika would love to have Skelton’s power within
his squad for the World Cup having watched his side miss some firepower up
front in recent losses to South Africa and New Zealand, and they face Wales and
Fiji in a tough pool in Japan.
If Australia are to pull this off it would
be a huge boost to the side, but they will need to move quickly to stand any
chance of getting it over the line.
