Will Genia says a powerful midfield combination of Samu Kerevi and Joseph Suaalii could be decisive for the Wallabies at the 2027 World Cup.
Genia believes Australia need size and physicality to compete with the world’s best, pointing to the dominance of teams like back-to-back world champions the Springboks and France.
“You can imagine having someone like him [Kerevi] at 12 and Suaalii at 13. You’ve got size, you’ve got power, you’ve got skill, finesse and ability all packaged in one centre pairing,” the former Wallabies captain told AAP in Japan.
“Because when I look at Test rugby, size matters. It’s done a bit of a cycle now where ball in play isn’t as high. The ball-in-play time, it’s shorter, sharper bursts, which lends itself to bigger athletes and more power athletes than it used to.”
Pointing to the Boks and Six Nations champions France, Genia added: “They use their physicality and their presence in the game to be able to win collisions and play on top of teams.”
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Kerevi, currently starring in Japan, has not featured for Australia since 2024, but Genia insists the 32-year-old remains a world-class option.
“And so you can imagine having a team with a backline like Kerevi and Joseph, ‘Marky’ Mark [Nawaqanitawase]. The size they would offer them and the impact they would have. That’d be awesome to see.”
However, Genia added that a recall should come with a return to the intensity of Super Rugby.
“He’s of that world-class calibre, but it’s important to be playing Super Rugby,” he said. “So you’d want him to have that intensity under his belt leading into a World Cup.”
Photo: Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images
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