Petaia back in the frame after three years away
The Wallabies named their squad this morning and Jordan Petaia is in it. The versatile 26-year-old has not worn the Australia jersey since the 2023 World Cup in France.
Head coach Les Kiss has picked him for the one-off Test against the Springboks, set for Perth in two weeks. Petaia walked away from Australian rugby in 2024 for a shot at the NFL with the Los Angeles Chargers. That move fizzled out. He then joined Perpignan in the Top 14, where he played twelve matches in the 2024/25 season. He is now with Urayasu D-Rocks in Japan Rugby League One.
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A teenage prodigy who has come the long way round
Australia identified him early. Petaia won his first cap at the 2019 World Cup in Japan, against Uruguay, while he was still a teenager. He was already being talked up as a mainstay for the next decade.
Kiss has also shuffled the deck after the series win in Argentina against the Pumas. Uncapped fly-half Harry McLaughlin-Phillips comes in for Carter Gordon, who has suffered a broken leg. The Western Force player kicked the winning points at the weekend in the opening round of Super Rugby AUS, against his former club Queensland Reds. He had already been part of the squad for the Nations Championship Tests against Ireland, France and Italy.
Prop Zane Nonggorr is back from a calf injury. He replaces Massimo De Lutiis, the 1000th Wallaby in history. Full-back Jock Campbell also makes the cut, while Dylan Pietsch stays on the sidelines.
A banana skin of a Test against the world champions
The squad will gather in Perth on Friday. South Africa arrive in form. They have just wrapped up their series against the All Blacks 3-1, finishing with a 43-28 win in the fourth and final Test in Baltimore.
Kiss is under no illusions. “South Africa have been the standard-bearers in world rugby for a long time, and we are excited to take them on in our own backyard in two weeks,” the Australian coach said. He also admitted his side still has “a lot of work” to do after those four recent Tests.
For Australia, this one-off clash is about more than just a warm-up. It is a proper measuring stick against the double world champions at home, in front of their own fans.
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