Elsom leaves Leinster talk for later

WALLABIES blindside flanker Rocky Elsom was predictably noncommittal yesterday about his imminent move to Leinster.

Taking a brief time-out at the end of the Australians' session in leafy Kew on the outskirts of Melbourne, the 25-year old Waratahs man merely observed: "All that stuff with contracts, I'd rather make a decision when it's been done and then get some facts out there and be straight up."

The timing of his exit is a little awkward, what with the Tri- Nations looming, although it's felt his impending departure, which rules him out of the Wallabies' end-of-season tour to the Northern Hemisphere in November, will not prevent Robbie Deans from picking him in the interim.

In any event, even the notion of playing overseas was not something Elsom was prepared to discuss. "I think that being with the Waratahs this year, we couldn't have had a better year than we had there and we've got some big challenges here (with the Wallabies). So I think that playing overseas will have to come after this."

The training was conducted in breezy, if brilliant, sunshine underneath Xavier College's red-brick buildings and green church spire, its hillside setting offering clear views of Melbourne's skyscrapers.

A feature of their training this past two weeks has been the use of two full packs from their 30-man squad for "live" scrummaging practice, which is possibly what Elsom had in mind when wryly observing, "Yeah, probably a bit too much enthusiasm today."

Much of the talk within the Wallabies camp, from new coach Deans down, has been of the Irish forwards' work in the collisions against the All Blacks.

"I thought their forwards had a really strong game. I think their forward pack, led by (Paul) O'Connell, has probably been their strength for a while," said Elsom. "They've definitely got some sharp backs but the forwards are what win them games."

As for Saturday's Test, he says the Wallabies are bracing themselves for "a very physical" game. "That's the style they (Ireland) go with and I think they'll go with nothing less on Saturday."

Given the Telstra Dome's closed roof, Elsom expects an altogether different Irish approach than the one of last Saturday when, like most viewers, he was struck by the sight of a shivering Brian O'Driscoll, teeth chattering, in Wellington.

"You see Brian O'Driscoll when he came off, he looked like he had hypothermia. He can't have been doing too much work out there," he added, presumably revealing a fairly deadpan, dry wit. "But yeah, it looked freezing."

Deans has revealed that much of the first week in Manly was spent getting accustomed to one another and working on the communication within the overall squad; a sort of group therapy. To this end, he repeatedly mixed the players up during drills and off-pitch group sessions.

Accordingly, Deans is not bothered by the prospect of playing the uncapped Waratahs scrumhalf Luke Burgess on Saturday, even if in an untried halfback combination with Matt Giteau, who could interchange with Berrick Barnes, or in playing Peter Hines, who has done well in a struggling Queensland team, for his debut on the right wing.

With Cameron Shepherd at fullback, it helps to have the experience of Stirling Mortlock, who has looked very sharp in training, at outside centre, as well as Lote Tuqiri on the wing.

With James Horvill confidently assumed to be starting alongside Nathan Sharpe, one of the main debates, as ever, has been the eight-year-old "(George) Smith or (Phil) Waugh" conundrum at openside. Smith is the better playmaker, with his ability to put a support runner through a gap or stand in as first or second receiver.

The best Canterbury Crusaders teams coached by Deans included three playmaking backs and when it was put to Deans his playmakers were limited to Giteau and Barnes, he said: "It might not be that your playmakers are all in the backs."

Only since arriving in Melbourne on Sunday have the Wallabies started to turn their focus toward Ireland, but Deans has already made a big impression.

"It's been pretty different, the way we've been rolling," said Elsom. "You'll see a snippet of it on Saturday night and then as we get into it more and more will evolve. We're not reinventing the wheel out there, but I think that the guys are keen to play. It's been a long time between drinks."