Rugby Championship Round Three: preview and predictions

Australia v South Africa
Australia have made their intention clear before their crucial clash against South Africa in Perth, they will run the ball and attack the wider channels.
The Wallabies are looking for redemption after they were outclassed in their first two opening games against the All Blacks including a 22-0 two weeks ago in Auckland.

Queensland Reds flyer Dom Shipperley, who comes in for the injured Drew Mitchell, will make his debut for the Wallabies tomorrow while Kurtley Beale returns to full back and Quade Cooper is given another chance at fly-half.
In the pack the ever-green Radike Samo is preferred to Scott Higginbotham at No.8 while Tatafu Polota-Nau comes in for Stephen Moore who was meant to become Australia’s most capped hooker but had to pull out today with a hamstring strain.
Captain Will Genia said: “We’ve just got to be harder on ourselves as a group and demand more of each other, particularly in game, so we can get those things right.
“Making the same errors over and over again is not good enough, particularly in the last couple of weeks we’ve played.”
South Africa are also looking for a big performance after they were dominated for most of the game in Argentina in their 16-16 draw prompting head coach Heyneke Meyer to say “they let the whole Republic down.”
To do so they have named a side to do what they do best, run the ball hard around the ruck and the No.10 (i.e. Quade Cooper) channel.
Bath‘s Francois Louw has been named on the bench with Stormers Duane Vermeulen set to make his debut at No.8 in a very big pack of forwards.
Ulster Ruan Pienaar comes in at scrum-half to bring direction to the Springboks running game pushing Francois Hougaard on the left wing with Lwazi Mvovo dropped to the becnh.
Australia: Beale; Shipperley, Ashley-Cooper, Barnes, Ioane; Cooper, Genia (capt.); Robinson, Polota-Nau, Alexander; Timani, Sharpe; Dennis, Hooper, Samo.
Replacements: S. Fainga’a, Slipper, Higginbotham, Gill, Phipps, Harris, A. Fainga’a.
South Africa: Kirchner; Habana, de Villiers (capt.), F. Steyn, Hougaard; M. Steyn, Pienaar; Mtawarira, Strauss, du Plessis; Etzebeth, Kruger; Coetzee, Alberts, Vermeulen.
Replacements: Liebenberg, Cilliers, van der Merwe, Louw, Goosen, Lambie, Mvovo.
Predictions: Before you run around you need to win the battle up front. This is going to be brutal. The Boks will be on a rampaging mission in Perth and might just be too strong for the Wallabies.
New Zealand v Argentina
After their impressive display against the Springboks, Argentina travel to Wellington to face the All Blacks, who they have never beaten, eager to show their performance in Mendoza two weeks ago against the Springboks wasn’t a flash in the pan.

The Pumas, helped by New Zealand World Cup winning coach Graham Henry, see mercurial fly-half Juan Martin Hernandez return to fly-half after he recovered from a groin injury while former London Irish flanker Juan Manuel Leguizamon has been recalled at openside.
Bath’s Horacio Agulla and Exeter‘s Gonzalo Camacho remain on the wing for the Pumas with inspirational captain Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe packing at No.8 again.
But the duel between Hernandez and Dan Carter won’t take place as the All Blacks’ fly-half has been ruled out with a calf strain.
He is replaced by Super Rugby champion Aaron Cruden while youngster Beauden Barrett comes in on the bench.
Conrad Smith returns at outside centre after his eye injury while Julian Savea, who impressed against Ireland in June, is picked on the left wing instead of Hosea Gear.
Up Front, Victor Vito and Brodie Retallick are given a chance to impress at blindside and lock respectively replacing Liam Messam and Sam Whitelock who sit on the bench.
New Zealand: Dagg; Jane, C. Smith, Nonu, Savea; Cruden, A. Smith; Woodcock, Mealamu, Franks; Romano, Ratallick; Vito, McCaw (capt.), Read.
Replacements: Hore, Faumuina, Whitelock , Messam, Weepu, Barrett, B. Smith
Argentina: Rodriguez; Camacho, Bosch, Fernandez, Agulla; Hernandez, Vergallo, Roncero, Guinazu, Figallo; Carizza, Albacete; Cabello, Leguizamon, Fernandez Lobbe (capt.).
Replacements: TBA
Predictions: The Pumas will get out of the blocks blazing as usual but the All Blacks will let the storm go and strike at any given opportunity to get a big win.
Read both reports in Sunday’s edition of The Rugby Paper.