Darcy Swain: Wallabies lock to make first Brumbies start of the season against Fijian Drua
Brumbies head coach Stephen Larkham has made several changes to his starting line-up for Friday’s clash against the Fijian Drua in Canberra, with Wallabies lock Darcy Swain set to make his first start of the season.
Swain will form part of a new second-row as he packs down alongside 29-year-old Scotsman Sam Thomson, who is set to make his Super Rugby Pacific debut for the Brumbies.
Familiar look to pack
The rest of the pack has a familiar look to it, with Allan Alaalatoa captaining the side from tighthead prop, with fellow Wallaby James Slipper starting at loosehead prop and Lachlan Lonergan at hooker.
Meanwhile, Rob Valetini and Rory Scott are the two flankers, while Pete Samu slots in at number eight again.
In the backline, Ryan Lonergan takes over from Nic White at scrum-half while Noah Lolesio continues at fly-half, while Ollie Sapsford replaces Tamati Tau at inside centre with Len Ikitau joining him in midfield.
The final change sees Ben O’Donnell come in for Corey Toole – who is ruled out with a concussion – on the left wing. O’Donnell joins Andy Muirhead (right wing) and Tom Wright (full-back) in the back three.
On the bench, Billy Pollard is the back-up hooker, with Blake Schoupp and Rhys Van Nek providing cover as the finishing props, while Nick Frost and Luke Reimer are the second-row and back-row replacements.
White and Jack Debreczeni are the finishing half-back pairing, while Declan Meredith is set to make his first Super Rugby Pacific appearance in Canberra as the spark in the backline.
Larkham said: “It’s critical we finish this block of the season well, and we’re aware the Drua pose a unique threat in this competition so we’ve gone with as strong a line-up as we could put out for Friday night.
Time to freshen up the second-row
“Our locks have put in some really big minutes over the first seven rounds so we had to freshen them up but we won’t lose anything with Darcy coming, and we’ve got full confidence in Sam to execute his role for us.”
Brumbies: 15 Tom Wright, 14 Andy Muirhead, 13 Len Ikitau, 12 Ollie Sapsford, 11 Ben O’Donnell, 10 Noah Lolesio, 9 Ryan Lonergan, 8 Pete Samu, 7 Rory Scott, 6 Rob Valetini, 5 Sam Thomson, 4 Darcy Swain, 3 Allan Alaalatoa, 2 Lachlan Lonergan, 1 James Slipper
Replacements: 16 Billy Pollard, 17 Blake Schoupp, 18 Rhys Van Nek, 19 Nick Frost, 20 Luke Reimer, 21 Nic White, 22 Jack Debreczeni, 23 Declan Meredith
Date: Friday, April 14
Venue: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Kick-off: 19:35 local (10:35 BST, 09:35 GMT)
Referee: Damon Murphy
Assistant Referees: Nic Berry, Rueben Keane
TMO: Brett Cronan
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