14 Oct 2012

Wounded Wallabies recall quartet for Bledisloe Cup finale

7:22 am on 14 October 2012

Wycliff Palu, Sekope Kepu and Drew Mitchell have returned from injury to bolster the Australia squad for next Saturday's final Bledisloe Cup test against World Cup winners New Zealand in Brisbane.

Utility back Adam Ashley-Cooper, who missed last weekend's 25-19 win over Argentina in Rosario due to concussion, also returned to beef up the side that has been hit hard by injuries.

A shoulder injury kept number eight Palu out of the squad since last year's Rugby World Cup, while prop Kepu played the Bledisloe Cup opener in August before hurting his knee in training which ended his participation in the inaugural Rugby Championship.

Mitchell, another long term injury concern who has managed only four tests in the last two years, has returned from an ankle injury sustained during his first test of the season against New Zealand at Eden Park in August.

Fresh from their Rugby Championship victory earlier this month, the All Blacks will be seeking to extend their 16-match winning run and claim the world top-tier record for consecutive test victories. Their last loss came in Brisbane last year against the Wallabies.

Australia's 30-man squad: Mike Harris, Nick Cummins, Drew Mitchell, Dominic Shipperley, Digby Ioane, Adam Ashley-Cooper, Ben Tapuai, Anthony Fainga'a, Pat McCabe, Kurtley Beale, Nick Phipps, Brett Sheehan, Wycliff Palu, Radike Samo, Scott Higginbotham, Michael Hooper, Liam Gill, Dave Dennis, Rob Simmons, Sitaleki Timani, Nathan Sharpe, Kane Douglas, Sekope Kepu, Paddy Ryan, Ben Alexander, James Slipper, Benn Robinson, James Hanson, Saia Fainga'a, Tatafu Polota Nau