Game IV Preview: Australia v Great Britain

The Tri-Nation?s bandwagon continues to roll on with more controversy than a toaster road-test on A Current Affair.

It?s impossible to ignore the Fien saga which, two years out from the World Cup, has resulted in exactly the sort of publicity the RLIF didn?t want. But if there?s a silver lining to this big grey cloud, I suppose we should all hope that they?ll have their act together by the 2008 Centenary Tournament.

Moving on, and today Pryce drew pistols at dawn, with the British winger claiming he prefers Bradford to Manly and pretty much doesn?t like Aussies because all we do is bang on about how Poms whinge. Funny that. But then again when you run around glassing people in pubs it?s unlikely you?ll receive a warm welcome anywhere.

On the Aussie front, Mason continues to snipe from the belltower, claiming the Pommies simply aren?t up to it after their performance against New Zealand. This game should hold special significance for the Aussie forward after debuting against Great Britain at this ground in 2002 with his prominent afro. The Kangaroos tore the Lions apart that night with Mason scoring a try and presumably keen to repeat his dominant performance.

All this sets the stage for some wonderful theatre on Saturday night so let?s take a look at the teams, with the Poms up first?

Great Britain: Paul Wellens, Brian Carney, Keith Senior, Kirk Yeaman, Leon Pryce, Danny McGuire, Sean Long, Stuart Fielden, Terry Newton, Jamie Peacock (c), Gareth Ellis, Gareth Hock, Sean O'Loughlin

Interchange: James Roby, Adrian Morley, Lee Gilmour, Jon Wilkin, Gareth Raynor (one to be omitted).

Just when we thought Noble had spared us one of the three Gareth?s by dropping Carvell, he pulls another one out of the hat, plonking Raynor on the bench as 18th man. There?s every chance he won?t play though. Gleeson has been dropped with exciting prospect Yeaman coming in and as widely anticipated, Morley moves to the bench with Peacock shifting up to prop and Hock gets a start this time around.

The skilful Wilkin looks set to play this week, after being named in the no 14 jumper with the rest of the team unchanged.

All these changes probably improve the Great Britain side and I?m sure they?ll be better for playing New Zealand last week. They lacked any real direction and penetration for the first 60-70 minutes before adding a couple of tries late in the game.

Now to the Aussies, and here?s how they line-up:

Australia: Karmichael Hunt, Brent Tate, Mark Gasnier, Jamie Lyon, Greg Inglis, Darren Lockyer (C), Ben Hornby, Mark O'Meley, Shaun Berrigan, Petero Civoniceva, Willie Mason, Nathan Hindmarsh, Luke O'Donnell

Interchange: Cameron Smith, Anthony Tupou, Brent Kite, Sam Thaiday.

There are a couple of big name omissions who have been rested for this clash with King and Hodges in the backs being allowed to recover from niggling injuries. Tate and prodigal son Lyon take their places whilst Hornby gets a shot at halfback ahead of Thurston.

Up front, Ryan has been given a spell with Mason coming back but into the second row. O?Meley starts alongside Civoniceva with Berrigan grabbing a starting berth at hooker ahead of Smith, who?s been benched. The balance of the team is unchanged with Thaiday playing his second game after Kaufusi was ruled out.

I think the reshuffle will do the Aussies some good. Hornby is an interesting playmaker and Lyon?s recall will be one of the talking points of the match. Tate, a seasoned campaigner, won?t have any problems out there and again the backline is enormous in stature, very skilled and fast.

The Decision

Like last week I can?t see anything other than a loss for Great Britain, but at least we?ll be able to gauge any improvement within their team.

Morley off the bench makes sense as he offers some impact, a factor that let them down last week. But this may see them start the game a little skinny with Peacock up front. The man who has to stand up here is Fielden. For a guy who allegedly wants to smash people he was very quiet against the Kiwis. But maybe I?m not paying the New Zealand forwards enough respect as they have been the dominant forward pack so far in the tournament.

I?m looking forward to watching Yeaman for the Poms. There?s big wraps on him and an interesting side issue has been the curiosity he?s generating out Redfern way. Obviously Bomber McRae still keeps in touch with the ESL.

In the Aussie camp, the change-up by Stuart is a good thing and he?s already used most of his squad, which is a rarity these days. Hunt has been going well at fullback but the forwards just look menacing. Three starting props with two mobile backrowers and more of the same off the bench looks simply unbeatable from a British point of view.

Then the size, speed and skill of the Aussie backs will be too hard to contain. Even after replacing King and Hodges the backline is still as ridiculously blessed with talent. I hope the addition of Hornby and his organisational skills will provide a bit more width and depth for Lockyer, Gasnier and Lyon to run amok.

Australia should win this one well on home soil and the crowd ought to be a significant one. The past three games have yielded an average of 21,875 people, which for International Rugby League is pretty encouraging considering two matches were hosted in non-traditional surrounds.