A powerful Scottish side is ready to make life hard for the Wallabies, with all their big guns back in the starting line-up for the Murrayfield Test.
The hosts have made 14 changes to their starting XV following the warm-up thrashing of Portugal, with their mercurial No.10 Finn Russell ready to orchestrate affairs in Edunburgh on Sunday (Monday AEDT).
In what looks the toughest test yet for the Wallabies on their British Isles tour after wins against England and Wales, the Scots unveiled a formidable side on Friday, headed by Russell, who’s just three short of scoring 400 points in international rugby.
Melburnian Sione Tuipulotu will lead the side in what will be an emotional occasion for the former Australia Under-20 international who’s swapped allegiances through his Scottish grandmother, who’s flown across to watch him.
Tuipulotu and Huw Jones resume their powerful partnership in the centre, while prolific try scorers Duhan van der Merwe and Darcy Graham, the only player who started against the Portuguese, will be on the wings, with Blair Kinghorn at fullback.
Van der Merwe and Graham jointly hold the record for most international tries for Scotland with 29 each.
Hooker Ewan Ashman and props Pierre Schoeman and Zander Fagerson make up the front row, while Grant Gilchrist and Scott Cummings are the two locks.
The loose trio features No.8 Matt Fagerson, who earns his 50th cap, and flankers Jamie Ritchie and Rory Darge.
Earlier in the November series, Scotland recorded an impressive 57-17 win over Fiji before losing 32-15 to South Africa after giving the world champions a bit of a scare.
“The players have earned the right to be in the team with the way they have performed,” coach Gregor Townsend said.
“It is one of the most experienced Scotland teams we have selected and they are in a good space in terms of their leadership and what they have learned over the last year or two.
“We know what a big game this is to end our year with our best performance,” he said.
“Australia are a quality side and always have been, and have a full squad to pick from with talented and experienced players. They will be confident.”
Scotland team:
15-Blair Kinghorn, 14-Darcy Graham, 13-Huw Jones, 12-Sione Tuipulotu (capt), 11-Duhan van der Merwe, 10-Finn Russell, 9-Ben White, 8-Matt Fagerson, 7-Rory Darge, 6-Jamie Ritchie, 5-Scott Cummings, 4-Grant Gilchrist, 3-Zander Fagerson, 2-Ewan Ashman, 1-Pierre Schoeman.
Replacements: 16-Dylan Richardson, 17-Rory Sutherland, 18-Will Hurd, 19-Alex Craig, 20-Josh Bayliss, 21-George Horne, 22-Tom Jordan, 23-Kyle Rowe.
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