Rugby Championship: New Set Piece Coach Mario Ledesma Believes Wallabies Will Have An Edge In Front-Row Depth Over Argentina

Australia’s newest scrum coach Mario Ledesma is confident Wallabies will fare well against Argentina claiming that the Aussies have an edge against Los Pumas’ front-row depth. The 42-year-old Ledesma vows to shake Wallabies’ easybeat scrum and implement the same function he did for the NSW Waratahs through the Rugby season.

Centre Tevita Kuridrani’s last gasp try gave Wallabies a 24-20 win over Springboks, but Australia’s often smeared scrum was at full display in their season-opening Test last weekend. However, Ledesma claimed he can change the team’s poor set-piece come game time against Los Pumas as reported by SBS.com.au. He added that Argentina, who is known for its scrumming prowess, does not have the same front-row depth as what Australia have.

"I thought they (the Argentinian scrum) were quite good (against New Zealand), especially in the first half. But then when the subs came in there was a big difference,” Ledesma said.

Ledesma has started working with the Wallabies on set pieces with full determination to change the perception everyone has of Wallabies’ scrumming abilities. He revealed that the team wants to dominate in set-pieces plays, “get the least amount of penalties possible and take the referees out of the picture.”

"If you look at most of the Australian teams throughout the (Super Rugby) competition, they were dominating in the scrums, especially the Reds,” The former Los Pumas said. "It's just showing everybody that we're there to scrum, and we want to contest.”

Ledesma played 84 Tests for Argentina as a hooker and represented his home country at four World Cups in his 15 years of international career. The fixture marks a home return for Ledesma, who retired from playing rugby in 2011.

Meanwhile, Australia’s inside centre Matt Giteau has been ruled out on Saturday’s Test in Mendoza after being on the receiving end of battering during the match against South Africa according to the Guardian. Giteau was cleared of any serious damage after scans on his nose and chest, but Wallabies’ coach Michael Cheika will not field the 32-year-old Giteau for the next Test as a precautionary move. Christian Leali’ifano was called as replacement for Giteau.

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