Valetini Says ‘All the Boys Are Hurting’ as Wallabies Recall Him
Rob Valetini returns to the Wallabies' starting side for the Test against Scotland at Murrayfield. Coach Les Kiss made a handful of changes, including Carter Gordon at No.10, after England's win left the team in what Valetini called a slump.
Wallabies backrower Rob Valetini says "all the boys are hurting" after the heavy loss to England, and he has been recalled to the starting side for the Test against Scotland at Murrayfield. The match kicks off on Monday morning Australian time (AEDT).
Valetini unusually came off the bench at Twickenham. Coach Les Kiss made a handful of changes for the Scotland game, and the Brumbies forward is the one the Wallabies lean on most.
Gordon back at No.10
Carter Gordon takes the No.10 shirt after returning from a broken leg. He suffered the injury in Mendoza against Argentina and has had a 10-week layoff.
Kiss also reinstalled the midfield pairing of Len Ikitau and Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, because of an injury to Isaac Henry. Harry Potter takes Suaalii's old wing spot.
The bench gets new faces in Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Tom Hooper and Lachie Shaw. Josh Nasser and Carlo Tizzano drop off it.
Kiss resisted sweeping changes but dropped two starters from Twickenham. Five-eighth Declan Meredith and Lukhan Salakaia-Loto are out of the 23-man squad.
Why Valetini matters
England physically dominated the Wallabies. The Wallabies routinely turn to the 115kg Valetini to cross the gainline with tough carries and give their attack front-foot ball.
Kiss tried to broaden Jeremy Williams' game by playing him at No.6. He learned how much the team needs Valetini's power: England were well on top by the time Valetini entered in the 46th minute.
"He's going to make a difference, yeah," Kiss said in Edinburgh. "That's for sure. His momentum that he can build is good."
Valetini, who won the John Eales medals in 2023 and 2024, said the group wants to respond. "We're sort of in a slump at the moment as a team," he said. "That's even more motivation to want to go out there and put out a good performance as a team."
He said he sees the hard carries and big tackles as his job. "When the game's getting tough and somebody needs to stand up for a carry, I try to put myself in that position," Valetini said.
Midfield and defence
Kiss chose not to bring in Kurtley Beale or use Filipo Daugunu in the centres. He pointed to the experience Ikitau and Suaalii have together: since 2024, they have played the 12-13 combination 19 times.
"It made sense to us," Kiss said. "It does matter, the time you've spent together in combination."
The Wallabies have conceded 138 points in their last three Tests. Kiss said the defensive work this week focused on getting both the collisions and the connections right.
"Once you lose one connection piece, you get on the back foot," he said. "We can all see that once a little bit of a chink happens, that domino effect on you happens quickly."
Valetini said the squad has had a hard look at itself. "We've had a hard look at ourselves, and are hoping to transfer what we've done at the training to the field," he said.
