Gregan still the man to lead the Wallabies

With speculation mounting over the future of Wallaby Captain George Gregan, Coach Eddie Jones and ARU Managing Director and CEO Gary Flowers have both stated he is the right man to lead Australia.

Contrary to weekend newspaper reports suggesting Gregan will step down, and then unnamed sources suggesting he is about to be pushed into retirement by Wallaby selectors, Gregan has been backed by both Jones and Flowers.

According to Jones, while there has been considerable speculation, he believes that at this stage there is no reason why Gregan should not be selected on the Spring Tour.

“George has received an enormous amount of criticism over the last month, and in turn there has been considerable speculation on his position in the team and future in the game,” said Jones.

“At this stage there is no reason why he would not be selected on the Spring Tour.”

“Like every player in the squad, his performance during the winter season will be reviewed and evaluated, but he is the current Australian captain and the right man to lead the team through this next period of time.”

For Flowers, the criticism and speculation surrounding Gregan is disappointing for a player of his stature in the game.

“George will play his 114th Test against the All Blacks in Auckland on Saturday, equaling Jason Leonard’s record of 114 Test matches for England,” said Flowers.

“His leadership has been unquestionable since taking over the captaincy in 2001 and through this difficult period more recently, as well as over the next period of time, George is the right man to lead team.”

With the Wallabies in camp in Coffs Harbour preparing for Saturday’s Test against New Zealand in Auckland, there will be no further comment on the speculation regarding Gregan’s future.

In other news today, Hooker Stephen Moore has been ruled out of Saturday’s Test against the All Blacks in Auckland with a lower back injury.

Moore, who complained of discomfort in his leg at training on Friday, which is believed to be related to a pre-existing lower back injury, will return to Brisbane today for an MRI scan and further prognosis.

His place in the squad has been taken by Adam Freier, who joined the team in camp in Coffs Harbour yesterday.

Moore becomes the 17th player to be considered unavailable for selection due to injury and Coach Eddie Jones says while it’s disappointing, it does present a good opportunity for Freier.

“It’s another injury and another disappointment, but Adam has already had a taste of Test rugby and is looking forward to capitalizing on this latest opportunity,” said Jones.

He’s an enthusiastic player, and with another four or five new blokes in the squad at the moment there’s certainly plenty of that out there in each session.”

“The team training is well and looking forward to getting to Auckland on Thursday.”

Prop Matt Dunning who is also in doubt with a back injury did not train today, and a decision on his fitness is expected to be made tomorrow, while loose forward Scott Fava was the only other causality this morning, missing the session through illness.

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