PM’s message rams home record breaker’s feat

Messages coming from the prime minister to Wallabies record-breaker James Slipper have rammed home just how significant his achievement is for new captain Harry Wilson making a bold showing in the opening Bledisloe Cup clash on Saturday an absolute must.

Slipper will come off the bench against the All Blacks for his 140th test, setting a new high-mark for a Wallabies outfit looking to rebound from a horror last-start thrashing against Argentina.

The Kiwis too, who have been Wallabies tormentors for two decades, and have won every clash in Sydney between the arch rivals since 2015, are themselves in the midst of a losing streak with pressure increasing with every loss.

Wilson, the fourth captain for new coach Joe Schmidt across just seven tests at the helm, tried to pass off the clash with the Kiwis as “just another game of footy for us” and said they were “process driven” with eyes only on “the moment in front”.

But the adulation coming the way of Slipper this week, from former players and other sporting royalty increased the sense that, as if a Bledisloe Cup clash wasn’t special enough, this was one the Wallabies had to win.

“Yeah, it’s a massive motivation for us this weekend,” Wilson said on Friday.

“He’s a great servant of our game and he’s a great mate to everyone in team. It was quite cool to see some of the messages he got sent for breaking the Australian record. He’s been such a good person for Australian rugby and I really hope we can do him proud.

“A lot of his ex -teammates sent out congratulations messages to him and you can see what sort of teammate he is, of how highly regarded, some legends of the game like Hoops (Michael Hooper), Rob Simmons, Scott Higginbotham, they all spoke so highly of him.

“Then you get the Anthony Albanese, Pat Cummins, some Australian greats there, sending a nice message to him.

“So it really makes you appreciate what sort of honour it honour it for James to be the record breaker for Australia.

“I guess when you’re playing with someone you’re really just trying to get a win for them and I think that’s what we try and do each test match.

“We’re not thinking about the big picture at the end we’re just thinking about winning the thing in front so that’s where our heads are really at.”

None of the Wallabies need to be reminded that a loss would mean another year without the Bledisloe Cup, a trophy the Australians haven’t handled as winners since 2002.

The critics have come hard too after the 67-27 loss in Sante Fe, with plenty in the northern hemisphere in particular keen to write the Wallabies off as an international dud.

Wilson though said that “negative stuff” was not on their minds, having rallied after the loss to Argentina to focus on what they do well, and what can be achieved against the All Blacks.

“We’ve obviously taken the loss and we’ve learned from that. And for us, we played some pretty good footy in that Argentine trip,” he said.

“We won three out of four halves and we just really got to, I guess, fix up when we were going bad we’ve got to find a way to get going good in the games and the big moments.

“And we’re just super motivated to perform for each to perform for our country. Obviously there’s the negative sort of stuff out there but that doesn’t worry us. We’re ready to perform for our country and do everyone proud.”