Australia vs. Uruguay: Preview, Live Stream, TV Info for Rugby World Cup Game
The stakes are heating up in Pool A of the Rugby World Cup 2015 as Australia take on Uruguay this Saturday hoping to pile the hurt on their South American opponents.
Wallabies coach Michael Cheika has rung the changes for his side's second outing of the tournament, with Scott Sio the only player remaining from the XV that started in Wednesday's 28-13 win against Fiji.
Uruguay head coach Pablo Lemoine, on the other hand, has made just four changes to his lineup following the 54-9 drubbing at the hands of Wales last Sunday.
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Although Cheika may look upon this as a second-string setup, many will be hoping to impress enough and stake their claim on a place in the XV that lines up against hosts England on October 3.
Former Exeter Chiefs lock Dean Mumm will captain the Rugby Championship title holders at Birmingham's Villa Park this weekend, where Quade Cooper has been given a chance at fly-half and Kurtley Beale starts at full-back.
The odds appear stacked against the Uruguayans leading into their second match of the tournament, but Lemoine's side will be hoping Australia's squad turnaround gives them enough of a chance to cause an upset.
Read on for all the viewing information needed to catch Saturday's Villa Park encounter, complete with team form guides and a glance at which players to watch out for.
Date: Sunday, September 27
Time: 12 p.m. BST/8 a.m. ET/9 p.m. AEST/11 p.m. NZST
Venue: Villa Park, Birmingham
Live Stream: ITV Player (UK), Universal Sports (U.S.), Fox Sports (AUS), Sky Go (NZ), SuperSport (SA)
TV Info: ITV (UK), Fox Sports 2 (AUS), Sky Sport 1 (NZ), SuperSport 1 (SA)
Team Lineups
Australia: 15. Kurtley Beale, 14. Joe Tomane, 13. Henry Speight, 12. Matt Toomua, 11. Drew Mitchell, 10. Quade Cooper, 9. Nick Phipps, 8. Wycliff Palu, 7. Sean McMahon, 6. Ben McCalman, 5. Will Skelton, 4. Dean Mumm (C), 3. Toby Smith, 2. Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1. Scott Sio
Uruguay: 15. Gaston Mieres, 14. Leandro Leivas, 13. Joaquin Prada, 12. Andres Vilaseca, 11. Rodrigo Silva, 10. Felipe Berchesi, 9. Agustin Ormaechea, 8. Juan Manuel Gaminara, 7. Matias Beer, 6. Juan De Freitas, 5. Franco Lamanna, 4. Santiago Vilaseca (C), 3. Mario Sagario, 2. German Kessler, 1. Mateo Sanguinetti
| September 23, 2015 | Australia 28-13 Fiji |
| September 5, 2015 | United States 10-47 Australia |
| August 15, 2015 | New Zealand 41-13 Australia |
| August 8, 2015 | Australia 27-19 New Zealand |
| July 25, 2015 | Argentina 9-34 Australia |
| September 20, 2015 | Wales 54-9 Uruguay |
| August 29, 2015 | Japan 40-0 Uruguay |
| August 22, 2015 | Japan 30-8 Uruguay |
| June 13, 2015 | Georgia 19-10 Uruguay |
| May 16, 2015 | Uruguay 14-36 Argentina |
Players to Watch
Matt Toomua
After struggling to carve out a place for himself under Cheika's reign so far, Mr. Versatile Matt Toomua has a chance to make a major impression against Uruguay on Saturday, for whatever that would be worth.
The Brumbies star starts at inside centre against the South Americans, but former New Zealand coach Graham Henry has given Toomua huge praise in that he feels he should be Australia's starting 10, he told Tony Veitch of Stuff.co.nz:
"I think they [Australia] could well be finalists. Their two challenges are going to be goal kicking and who is going to play in the halves. They have had [Quade] Cooper and Bernard Foley but every time Matt Toomua player at 10 I think he looks the business. He's a very direct player.
I would play [Will] Genia and Toomua at 9 and 10 but nobody else thinks that. But I don't know is [sic] anyone can kick goals. I don't know how good Toomua is as a goalkicker and I wonder if Matt Giteau will be in the top 15. If he is, he can goal kick a bit but he's no Daniel Carter.
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It's something of a lose-lose situation for Toomua on Saturday: Hammer Uruguay, and it's simply a case of doing what's expected; anything less, and the poor performance could be laid on him, along with others.
He can expect a scrappy affair on Saturday, too, as Australia forwards coach and former Argentina international warns what the players should expect against Uruguay, per Chris Dutton of the Canberra Times (via the Sydney Morning Herald):
"They're aggressive, they have a rushing defence and are hard on the ball, that has always been their trademark. They are a really proud country. A really small country, but really proud and quite patriotic. You see it in the national anthem when they get quite emotional.
There will be some aggression, but we [the Wallabies] don't need to get into that sort of game – being dirty, disorganised and in a dog fight. That's what [Uruguay] will be looking for.
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That high line will affect Toomua as much as any other, but if Wales' ability to break down the minnows time and again last Sunday was anything to go by, he'll certainly have his chances to impress.
| Australia Win | 1-500 |
| Draw | 100-1 |
| Uruguay Win | 66-1 |
| Handicap: Australia -63 | 16-1 |
Joaquin Prada
Uruguay are a team without so much as a household name among them, but up-and-coming midfield man Joaquin Prada will be adamant to ensure the Wallabies don't pass his side by as easily as Wales.
Speaking to ESPN.com's Tristan Barclay after falling to Wales in Cardiff last Sunday, Prada touched on how special the moment was for him and his team-mates despite the gulf in the scoreline:
"It was the biggest game I have played in my life. The environment here has been unforgettable and a unique experience because we have never played in such a big stadium. To sing the anthem in a stadium like this was unforgettable, and we have felt a lot of warmth from the Welsh public. It was very loud and the experience was amazing.
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Being placed in the Pool of Death was a cruel twist of fate for Lemoine's men, but it relieves the international minnows of any and all pressure when lining up against their superiors.
Thursday evening saw Namibia centre Johan Deysel Jr. score his side's first try of the tournament against New Zealand—a terrific effort from close range—and Prada will hope to mimic that feat on Saturday.
The 24-year-old stands out as something of a live-wire in the Uruguay back line, and more than merely holding Australia's considerable runners at bay, Prada has to make an attacking dent of his own in Birmingham.
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