Nic White and Nick Phipps ear wear the scrum-half's jumper well © Getty Images

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Nick Phipps concedes Nic White is in pole position to wear the Wallabies' No.9 jersey against New Zealand in the Bledisloe Cup opener at ANZ Stadium in Sydney on August 16, despite the New South Wales Waratahs half-back's outstanding, possibly match-winning, form in the Super Rugby finals.

White started all three Tests against France in June, and he trained as the scrum-half during the full squad's first session together; Phipps was kept as a reserve, but his efforts for the Waratahs as they claimed their first Super Rugby title have him in strong contention for the starting berth.

Phipps won the players' award for his dominant performance in the semi-final against the Brumbies, which included a number of try-saving tackles, and some pundits consider he may have the jump on the incumbent when Ewen McKenzie names his side on Tuesday. But the championship-winning half-back is happy to bide his time.

"He's had a great year as well, so it's not as if I can come in and say I deserve that spot," Phipps said. "[He] played really well in those three French games in the middle of the year, so when the coaches are obviously looking back on past performances he'd probably have that nudge ahead of me. I'll just keep working hard and hopefully opportunities come."

Phipps said selection in the run-on side was essentially out of his hands, and he was just grateful to be in the frame.

"This time last year I wasn't in this position at all so I'm just stoked to be here at the moment," he said.

"It just shows how footy goes: you can be top of the world one minute and not even around the next. That's why I'm a big believer in you're only as good as your last game."