Wallabies captain Harry Wilson has put his full faith behind the side's latest No. 10, debutant Declan Meredith, as the side prepare for a hostile clash against France in Brisbane.
Joe Schmidt's side was struck by an injury crisis just days after their Nations Championship loss to Ireland, with first choice and second choice five-eighths Carter Gordon and Ben Donaldson both scrubbed out ahead of the side's second Test with calf injuries.
Gordon left the field in the second half against Ireland with a calf complaint with scans later revealing a small tear, ruling the 25-year-old out of the remainder of the series. Donaldson finished the match, missing a final penalty to steal the win, but later pulled up lame over the weekend with a contusion too much of a risk for further injury. It's resulted in Meredith's shock call up.
Born in Cairns, Meredith contemplated giving up the sport just a few years ago after he made the move to Canberra where he plied his trade in club footy before he earned a contract at the Brumbies. After several years sitting behind Noah Lolesio, the 27-year-old stepped up to make the No. 10 jersey his own in 2026, usurping Wallabies fly-half Tane Edmed.
"It's obviously been a massive leap for him, his first Test start at Suncorp Stadium, a boy from Cairns playing in his home state, it's been really special for him," Wilson told media at a joint media conference with France captain Maxime Lucu.
"But he's just been switched on, he's been leading the boys around the park. I've only got to know him the last few weeks, but he seems very level-headed, and he's just really excited, and we back him and we believe in him, and we look forward to him putting out a great performance."
Meredith will be supported by his Brumbies teammate Ryan Lonergan in the halves, in what has been the form halves pairing in Australian rugby in 2026, while Tom Wright slides in at fullback and his former Brumbies teammate Len Ikitau sits at inside centre.
"I love the people inside and out of him. Ryan Lonergan and Lenny Ikitau, someone he's played quite a lot of football with, and they're quite level-headed. Lonergan and Declan, they played a lot of footy together this year and it's probably the form 9-10 combo in the Australian sides of the competition.
"He's someone who's worked really hard to get where he is today and if he keeps going the way he's been going this season, he's a man in form and I think it's a lot of confidence in him."
Despite the change in the middle, Wilson has made it clear that only a win will be enough for his squad.
The Wallabies fell heartbreakingly short, going down 33-31 to Ireland last week, with the No. 8 recognising the team had several moments to win the match - not just the after-the-siren penalty attempt from Donaldson.
The Wallabies currently stare down a six-game losing streak. It's an unwanted record they haven't held since 2016.
A loss against the back-to-back Six Nations champions would also be one win - an unconvincing 19-15 win over Japan in Tokyo - from their last 10 matches.
After they conceded 12 penalties, 11 inside their own half, Wilson has backed his team to take their chances this week and get on the right side of the ledger.
"Obviously it's never ideal after a loss to lose a few players, but I guess from last week we take a little bit of confidence.
"Obviously we know we need a win, we had a few really good moments on the weekend, but ultimately those moments weren't good enough to get the result, and we've really got to start icing them and give ourselves a win.
"No team can sit there saying we're happy being close and improving but ultimately, we need wins and we're playing here in Australia at home.
"We've got to go out there and win and we've got to ice those moments. It's all about discipline and we know we can fix that."
In an interesting twist, the Wallabies will face-off with several familiar faces with three Australian-born players named in France's line-up.
Last weekend former Brumbies and Waratahs lock Tom Staniforth made his debut for Les Bleus off the bench and will do so again in Brisbane, while Brisbane-raised pair Manny Meafou and Moses Alo-Emile will also don the le coq emblem on their chests.
"I's pretty cool," Wilson said. "I played Queensland Schoolboys with Moses Alo-Emile, and haven't seen him since then, so it'll be pretty cool to go up against him again. He's a big boy, and he's been plying his trade in France now for a long time in the front row, so no doubt he's going to be a handful.
"And then, obviously, Emmanuel Meafou, a Brothers' boy. We versed him last year. He's a presence on the field, and first time he's playing a Test match in his home stadium here, too, in Brissy.
"They're going to be a handful, but gee, the rest of the team is a handful, too, so we're going to have to be fired up and ready."