Phase two of the Kiss-era Wallabies is about to begin. There is one lingering concern

September 6, 2026 — 1:59pm

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Peering into a laptop during a virtual press conference after a win over Argentina on Sunday morning, Wallabies coach Les Kiss was explaining why he’d been so persistently funky with selections - and substitutions - during his first five weeks in charge.

In a run of four Tests against Japan and Argentina, Kiss made an average of eight changes to his starting team for each game. And then when games were underway, the coach responded to injuries and substitutions by sometimes rearranging several positions at a time.

“There’s a combination we’ve never seen before - or will see again,” Stan commentator Sean Maloney said when looking at a backline of Kalani Thomas, Ryan Lonergan, Len Ikitau, Isaac Henry and Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii.

Injuries informed some of that jigsaw - and we learned Lonergan is a tidy No.10 - but Kiss said there was a method to the madness.

“Some of the things we’re trying to work on is to make ourselves a bit future-proof,” Kiss said. “So we become adaptable in those spaces.”

There was a risk to Kiss’ strategy. Changing half of the team each week could have exposed the team to a lack of cohesion against sides with........

© The Sydney Morning Herald