Wallabies halfway to the Grand Slam and give debut to Harry Potter for test against Scotland

The Wallabies are halfway there.

Australia’s bid for a first Grand Slam of the home unions in 40 years is off to a great start after a last-gasp win over England and a thumping of Wales.

The end-of-year tour of Britain and Ireland might be about to get tougher.

“The test against Scotland is going to be the hardest one yet,” Australia lock Will Skelton says of his team’s visit to Murrayfield in Edinburgh on Sunday.

Then come the Irish a week later. They are the No. 2-ranked team in the world, behind South Africa, and the reigning Six Nations champions.

How about a win in Dublin to seal the Slam?

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18th debutant

Before that, though, Scotland — a team that can blow hot and cold, but has undoubted match winners in the backline like flyhalf Finn Russell and center Huw Jones — should offer a stern examination for a new-look Australia team containing an 18th debutant in 2024 alone.

And he’s sure to be a headline grabber whether he scores a try or not.

Harry Potter, a 26-year-old winger born in London before he moved to Melbourne at the age of 10, will make his first appearance for the Wallabies. Fittingly it comes in the city where the famous books about his fantasy namesake were written by J.K. Rowling.

Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt is building a player base for a busy few years for Australian rugby, which includes the British and Irish Lions tour next year and staging the men’s Rugby World Cup in 2027.

It’s why the likes of Potter is being tested out — and why Joseph Sua’ali’i has been fast-tracked into the squad. The guy who switched from rugby league only last month will make his second start in the 15-man format after coming in for suspended center Samu Kerevi.

Also returning to the lineup are captain and No. 8 Harry Wilson, openside flanker Carlo Tizzano and scrumhalf Jake Gordon.

Scotland waiting

Schmidt is fully aware that Scotland is in a very different place to the Wallabies.

“The core of the Scotland team has been together for a number of years,” he says. “They’re cohesive and combative and we will need to be at our best on Sunday.”

Schmidt said Australia’s buildup has been complicated this week because freezing temperatures have meant training fields have been unplayable.

“The group have adapted well to the situation,” he says, just like the Australians have reacted well to a last-place finish in the Rugby Championship after five losses in six games.

The Scots were dealt a blow when they lost former Wallabies No. 8 Jack Dempsey to a shoulder injury, and have summoned 2023 World Cup captain Jamie Ritchie, and winger Darcy Graham, who has seven tries in his last four games.

Scotland has thrashed Fiji 57-17, lost to South Africa 32-15 and beaten Portugal 59-21 this month. The host has beaten the Wallabies in three of their last four meetings, and lost the most recent in 2022 only when Blair Kinghorn missed a late penalty kick.

“We have to start (beating the world’s top teams) if we really want to be taken seriously,” Huw Jones says. “It’s all well and good beating Fiji and Portugal but we want to take strides. We’ve got to nail it against Australia.”

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