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November 20, 2009 - 11:43PM
Australia have suffered a setback on the eve of the rugby Test against Scotland in Edinburgh, with outside centre Digby Ioane ruled out with a shoulder injury.
Ryan Cross has been called up to replace Ioane, with Lachie Turner promoted to the bench.
The injury is to his right shoulder, not the left which required a reconstruction earlier this year and sidelined Ioane for six months.
Making no apologies, the Wallabies say they will be happy to win ugly at Murrayfield if that's what's required to avoid their first loss to Scotland in 27 years.
Bracing themselves for horrible conditions after a rain-filled week in Edinburgh, the Wallabies will once again be relying on midfield playmakers Matt Giteau and Quade Cooper to continually boot them out of their danger zone.
"Because of the conditions being as bad as they are, then you've just got to do whatever it takes to win," Giteau said. "That's the reality of it, you've got to play to the conditions.
"All teams, or most teams, like to play expansive and like to throw the ball around, but we've got to go in with that mentality that we need to play as tight and as simple as we need to win the Test.
"If there's opportunities, you've got to take them and you've got to be good enough to take them."
The orders to play a typically dour northern-hemisphere brand of rugby are coming from the top.
"You don't want to be playing with the ball in the wrong part of the ground," coach Robbie Deans said.
"It's easier for defences to really pressure if you become isolated or get caught behind your support."
Australia learned that the hard way against Ireland last Sunday when, after controlling the game for more than an hour, the Wallabies conceded two late tries to allow the Six Nations champions to snatch a 20-20 draw.
Both scores came after the Wallabies lost possession in their own half, enabling Ireland to apply relentless pressure before, almost inevitably, striking with converted tries.
Deans realises running rugby is more attractive to fans, but also suspects Australians wouldn't cop a humbling defeat at the hands of world's ninth-ranked team.
"Obviously we are aware there's an interested public - we hope there's an interested public - and we'd certainly like to have them identify with not only the way we go about our work, but also to have an appeal," he said.
"But I think even our sporting public would concede that they're probably happier to accept a result that's not so pretty than something that's pretty but doesn't provide a result.
"Put them both together and we'd be very happy, and that's what we aspire to.
"The blokes love to play; the most enjoyable rugby they can play is rugby where they're all involved, all 15, and get to express what they can do.
"So that's we try and work hard to create that opportunity, but you've got to earn that right. It doesn't come easily because there's someone on the other side who wants the opposite."
Despite Australia's conservative approach, Deans is expecting Scotland, under new coach and former England boss Andy Robinson, to throw caution to the wind in a bid to snap a 16-Test losing streak against the Wallabies.
"He wants them to unshackle, he wants them to play with ambition and that ambition will be two-fold," Deans said.
"It will be through physicality and then being prepared to take a risk, prepared to chance their arm in order to profit.
"That's what we expect."
It's a shame the Ioane/Cooper midfield combo haven't got another chance to strut their stuff together. Good for us that Crossy is getting another chance though I suppose.
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Originally Posted by James
