Baxter, Palu ruled out of Force clash
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Friday, 19 March 2010
NSWRU Media Unit
Wallaby forwards Al Baxter and Wycliff Palu have been ruled out of Saturday's round six match against the Western Force in Perth due to injury.
Ben Mowen flies high against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld.
Ben Mowen flies high against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld. [2010 Super 14 Round 3 - HSBC Waratahs v Bulls; Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria, 27/2/10
Both players were given every opportunity to play, and while head coach Chris Hickey remains positive about their chances of making it back for the Blues game, the decision was made to give the Test stars more time to recover.
"If it was a semi-final you'd seriously consider putting both players on the park, but at this stage of the season the risk is just too great," said Hickey. "There's a good chance they could worsen their injuries by playing and given we have good depth in the pack it's the right decision to make.
"By staying in Sydney they can get on to their rehab and we'll see where they're at when we come back on Monday."
Wallaby prop Sekope Kepu comes into the starting line-up for their first time this year, with Dan Palmer moving onto the bench. Ben Mowen will now start at No.8, with Locky McCaffrey celebrating his new Super 14 contract by being elevated to the match day 22 for the second time this year.
"Keps and Benny Mowen have a lot of experience starting in these important games and will have no problem slotting into the side," said Hickey. "Dan Palmer and Locky McCaffrey have been sticking up their hand for selection every week and they were both fairly impressive for the Junior Waratahs last weekend.
"It's a great sign of the depth within the squad that if we lose players like Al and Cliffy we can replace them with quality players."
The HSBC Waratahs fly to Western Australia this morning and will hold their Captain's Run at Perth Oval in the afternoon.
2010 Super 14 - Round 6
WESTERN FORCE V HSBC WARATAHS
Saturday 20 March 2010 (Kick-off 7:10pm AWST, 10:10pm AEDT)
Perth Oval
HSBC WARATAHS
15. Sosene Anesi (Eastern Suburbs)
14. Lachie Turner (Eastwood)
13. Tom Carter (Sydney University)
12. Berrick Barnes (Sydney University)
11. Drew Mitchell (Balmain)
10. Daniel Halangahu (Sydney University)
9. Luke Burgess (Sydney University)
8. Ben Mowen (Randwick)
7. Phil Waugh [c] (Sydney University)
6. Dave Dennis (Sydney University)
5. Kane Douglas (Southern Districts)
4. Dean Mumm (Sydney University)
3. Sekope Kepu (Randwick)
2. Tatafu Polota-Nau (Parramatta)
1. Benn Robinson (Eastwood)
Reserves
16. Damien Fitzpatrick (Eastwood)
17. Dan Palmer (Southern Districts)
18. Will Caldwell (Sydney University)
19. Locky McCaffrey (Eastwood)
20. Josh Holmes (Warringah)
21. Kurtley Beale (Northern Suburbs)
22. Rob Horne (Southern Districts)