Australia: ‘Running nine’ Tate McDermott offers Eddie Jones a selection headache

Former Wallaby Morgan Turinui believes Tate McDermott’s running game gives Australia head coach Eddie Jones a selection headache at scrum-half.

The Reds star missed out on the initial Wallabies squad but responded brilliantly with a solid performance in his side’s loss against the Brumbies last weekend.

McDermott scored an outrageous solo try in that match, starting in his own half off the back of the line-out and beat several defenders before throwing a stunning dummy and running in to score.

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Tate McDermott made a statement with a try of the year contender in @SuperRugby!#SuperRugbyPacific pic.twitter.com/Ud5ZQzSC6K

— RUGBYcomau (@rugbycomau) April 11, 2023

Offers a running game

Turinui believes not many other scrum-halves have that kind of running ability in them, which makes McDermott an interesting player to consider with selection.

“The McDermott conundrum around his selection or non-selection in the Wallabies squad is that his 50 metre try, he does things that no one else can do,” Turinui said on Stan Sport’s Between Two Posts show.

“What impressed me at least as much if not more so last night was his passing looked a little bit crisper, I liked his work off the deck, his core role.

“I think that’s probably where Nic White for example, or a Ryan Lonergan, might just shade him is their core role, the basics of their game.

“A running nine, there’s no one better – but the complete package, I think that’s where they want more from Tate.”

“More urgency off the ball”

Meanwhile, Noah Lolesio was in a similar boat where he was looking to impress after being omitted from Jones’ first squad, and he also had a brilliant game to throw his name back in the mix.

“Maybe there were conversations in the background, that Eddie has given those guys a call to say, ‘This is what I’m looking for, I want more urgency off the ball,’” Turinui added.

“He’s talked all the time about work ethic, since he landed in late January, it’s about what players do off the ball, who can work harder, finding ways when you think you’re working as hard as you can to work even harder.

“Somewhere in his messaging to those players, that has to be there.”