Ex-NRL player Marika Koroibete and Waratahs back-rower Jack Dempsey are among the bolters for the Wallabies' spring tour next month.
Queensland centre Izaia Perese and prop Taniela Tupou also look set for dream call ups, as Australian coach Michael Cheika tries to put behind him a horror 30 per cent win ratio this season and build for the future.
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Cheika says NZ lack respect
Wallabies coach Michael Cheika says New Zealand lack respect after he was pictured on the front page of the New Zealand Herald as a clown. Vision courtesy Rugby.com.au
It is understood that Rebels recruit Koroibete, who was a standout in the Melbourne Storm's run to the NRL grand final this year, is the only one of the four who will be named in the official squad, while the other three will be taken as development players after standout performances in the National Rugby Championship this year.
Koroibete let the cat out of the bag last month when he confessed Cheika had used a spring tour appearance as a carrot to make the code switch.
It is believed Dempsey, Perese and Tupou will train with the Wallabies but could link up with Robbie Deans' Barbarians for game time and also play in a combined Australian side against a French Barbarians team in a midweek clash before the Ireland Test.
Dempsey is the most experienced of the group with 10 Super Rugby caps under his belt. The Gordon and Riverview back-rower debuted for NSW under Cheika last year and played for the Australian under-20s in New Zealand.
Tongan-born Reds prop Tupou has played five Super Rugby games after being talent-spotted as a schoolboy in Auckland two years ago, while Brisbane centre Perese, who went to Churchie, is yet to make his debut for the Reds but impressed Cheika with his performances for Queensland Country in the NRC.
The five players are a welcome bright spot for the Wallabies, who fell to their seventh loss of the season against the All Blacks on Saturday in a clash overshadowed by its bitter aftermath.
Their troubles worsened on Monday when experienced second-rower Dean Mumm was handed a one-match ban for elbowing New Zealand counterpart Brodie Retallick. The Wallabies leave on Friday for a tough five-Test tour of Europe where, among other challenges, a fourth showdown awaits with Eddie Jones' England.
Reaction was mixed to Cheika's outspoken criticism after the Test. Some New Zealand and Australian pundits accused the Australian coach of whingeing, while others on both sides of the ditch welcomed the return of genuine spite to the tran-Tasman relationship.
"Two thumbs up to Cheika, for giving rugby's sickly atmosphere a giant two-fingered salute," wrote Chris Rattue in the NZ Herald. "This is freedom. Cheika is pouring acid over rugby's saccharine ways. The provincial competition is devoid of character and conflict. Super Rugby is a crock of you know what. The All Blacks' victory march is a procession. Then along came Mad Mike [Cheika]."
Others called on the Australian Rugby Union to rein in the Super Rugby title-winning coach, who is known for speaking plainly and raging against officialdom.
"Australian rugby's new saviour is now suffering a bad case of second-year syndrome, quickly discovering the international area isn't as easy as first seemed," Liam Napier wrote for Fairfax Media in New Zealand. "His selections appear muddled; his default off-field approach aggressive.
"Poor taste or not, getting riled by a newspaper cartoon shows where his mental state is at. Unequivocally stating the All Blacks had something to do with him being dressed as a clown is just plain madness. Truth is Cheika has much bigger problems to worry about, and should remember what happens in his own backyard before riding the high horse about being respectful."
Cheika laid low upon his return to Sydney but is expected to name his full touring squad on Tuesday, with Will Genia expected to be named and available for the first three Tests, which fall inside the international window.
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