Rugby:Australia's David Pocock has been ruled out of Saturday's Cook Cup clash with England. The flanker had been due for a return to action at Twickenham after recovering from knee ligament damage, but scans confirmed last night the openside has suffered a calf strain.
Australia will also be without lock Kane Douglas, who played in Saturday’s 33-6 defeat to France but has developed a knee injury.
Douglas was urged by his family to play against France despite the news that his mother, Trish, had suffered a stroke on the flight from Australia on Friday.
While still in hospital in London, Douglas's mother is said to be in a comfortable condition.
The Wallabies’ secondrow will be depleted further tomorrow if lock Rob Simmons is found guilty of the dangerous tip tackle he was cited for after the Paris match.
Medical staff will re-assess Pocock and Douglas next week once the players have arrived in Italy for the third match of the tour in Florence.
Despite the absentess, Wallabies hooker Tatafu Polota-Nau says their scrum will "dominate" England's.
"We are confident we can dominate the English scrum. We have got it right in previous games, we just have to revisit where we were strong and concentrate on that," he said. "We like to keep our game consistent but Saturday night was our fault. We just have to stick to what we know. The collision is one area that we want to dominate because the team that does gets the benefit of go forward ball.
"We are feeling good. The French game is gone and there is a new challenge ahead and everyone is keen to get back out on the pitch. My opinion is that if the forwards are good, that is the only way you are going to win a Test. It is more about mental preparation for us. We know we have got it, but we just have to make sure that mentally we are right so we can do the physical stuff."
