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MELBOURNE - Wallabies coach John Connolly is concerned about the poor start made by Australian teams in this season's Super 14 with the start of the World Cup just a few months away.
Australia's four representatives in the competition against sides from South Africa and New Zealand have
mustered just six wins out of 15 matches and lie in seventh, eighth, 11th and 13th positions in the standings after four rounds.
All three sides playing at the weekend lost, the Western Force by a point to the Lions in Perth, the ACT Brumbies to a last-minute try by the Hurricanes and the Queensland Reds suffering a 38-13 thrashing by the Blues in Auckland. The Waratahs had a bye.
"Overall the major challenge for us is how to make sure the players are mentally and physically in the best shape for the World Cup," Connolly was quoted as saying in the Sydney Morning Herald.
"Still, making the Super 14 semi-finals is important. If they don't, that is a concern for us. It means that they are not winning, and mentally that's not good.
"It also might mean we have a lot of injuries, which would be discouraging as well," Connolly added.
The Wallabies coach said he was envious of All Blacks opposite number Graham Henry, who was able to rest his main test players for the opening rounds of the competition.
"We've seen how New Zealand have approached it (by resting players), but ours is unfortunately different to that."
Connolly said the scrum and lineout were the main areas of concern yet a former Wallaby coach stressed that Australia should not worry unduly about their clubs' indifferent Super 14 start.
Queensland coach Eddie Jones said club form did not translate to international performances.
"National teams are not the provincial teams and provincial teams are not the national teams, so it has no bearing on the national team and I think that has been proven historically," he said.
"In the past for the national team you pick the best 25 players and there is still 25 good players in Australia, so I wouldn't be too worried about the World Cup from a Super 14 point of view."
Twice world champions Australia have been grouped with Wales, Fiji, Canada and Japan for the World Cup, which starts in France in September.
- REUTERS