Les Kiss backed a four-cap fly-half after the 43-21 loss in Sydney, with Carter Gordon on his way back from a broken leg.
Declan Meredith got the start only because Ben Donaldson withdrew two days out.
“So I think Deckie played a pretty good game, really. And, you know, he’s only, what, four Tests old, and that’s one of the things that will always stand for us now. You know, we’ve got to make sure that we have players that can stand in the breach, and I think that’s a really good positive to come out of the game, to see Deckie do what he did.”
The Wallabies head coach said it in Sydney on Saturday 17 October, with the Bledisloe Cup gone for another year. Donaldson would have been fit a week later, so the 10 shirt for England is open again.
The answer that decides it came later in the same press conference. Meredith or Gordon at Twickenham? Have your say in the comments.
Carter Gordon is coming along, and Donaldson is ready
Asked whether he expected his fly-halves back for England, Kiss ran through the list.
“Yeah, at this stage I’d say back for selection would be, yeah, Carter’s coming along. Donno, he’d be right next week if we had to play.”
Gordon fractured his fibula late in the 28-all draw with Argentina in Mendoza. Rugby Australia expects him to be available for the November tour, along with Donaldson.
Donaldson started the three Tests before Sydney. At Eden Park he took a 7.5, creating both Australian tries in a first half that ended 17-14.
What Kiss saw in Meredith
Kiss started with the faults: an early kick that should have stayed in hand, and restarts that were a little off. Meredith, he said, is “a hard marker in himself”. Then came the praise.
“He took the line on, marshalled ourselves into that second half with some good footy. Even the first half, he was probably the most dangerous player in terms of putting us into space.”
The match backs Kiss up: Meredith’s offload sent Jeremy Williams over for the first Wallabies try on 29 minutes.
He also saved a try with a tackle on Beauden Barrett, then broke for Filipo Daugunu’s try and converted it for his first Test points. It earned him an 8 that headlined the Sydney ratings.
The Wallabies’ video of the press conference has Kiss’s full answer on Meredith.
Four Tests old, and 27
Meredith was 27 when he made his debut against France in Brisbane in July.
He grew up in northern Queensland and moved south in 2019 to play club rugby for Wests while studying to be a teacher. He made his Super Rugby debut for the Brumbies in 2023, then spent close to two years mostly on the bench.
“There were definitely times when I thought the dream was over,” he told reporters before his debut, according to Rugby.com.au.
Ryan Lonergan, his Brumbies team-mate and room-mate, told Rugby.com.au after Sydney what that patience has produced.
“His ability to be able to back himself and take the game on, he’s a real attacking threat and he’s someone that’s fun to play with, to be honest.”
The World Cup answer that settles it
Later in the press conference, Kiss was asked if 12 months was enough time before the home World Cup.
“It’s the time we have. So, you know, one of the great qualities that we got today was Declan Meredith standing up. We know we have experience in a number of positions that we can lean back into, but to get these boys up to speed is something that’s important for us. The time we have is the time we have.”
Asked about a home World Cup, the first player he reached for was a four-cap fly-half. He set experience he “can lean back into” against getting “these boys up to speed”, and called the second important.
Kiss did not name the experienced players he meant. The only player he named in that answer was Meredith.
Twelve months is not long to make a Test 10. Meredith had two days’ notice in Sydney and still took the night’s top mark. Start him at Twickenham, and keep starting him.
The case for Donaldson and Gordon
Donaldson made both tries in the first half at Eden Park, and he scored one in the 42-38 win over the Springboks in Perth.
Gordon was the 10 Kiss brought back against Japan in August, when he asked for a more direct Wallabies.
Kiss also conceded something about Sydney. He was asked whether a fairly new combination at 10 and 12 had cost them in the first half. “There’s a little bit in that for sure,” he said, before crediting the All Blacks’ lines.
One awkward half on two days’ notice is not enough to drop him, and Kiss’s own World Cup answer points the same way.
Your turn
Donaldson is fit and Gordon is on the way back, but the four-cap 10 has just made his case. Meredith or Gordon at Twickenham? Settle it below.
Frequently asked
Is Carter Gordon fit?
Kiss said on Saturday 17 October that Gordon was “coming along” after a broken leg, and Rugby Australia expects him to be available for the November tour.
How many caps does Declan Meredith have?
Four. He made his debut against France in Brisbane in July and started in Sydney on Saturday 17 October after Ben Donaldson withdrew.
Who plays 10 for the Wallabies against England?
The team has not been named. England play Australia at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, on Sunday 8 November.
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