Howley prepared for Wallaby backlash
November 23, 2001

Wales' Rob Howley is fully prepared for a resurgent Australia when they look to bounce back from back to back defeats against Graham Henry's side on Saturday.

The Wallabies arrive at the Millennium Stadium bristling from losses to England (21-15) and France (14-13), setbacks far more convincing than the scorelines suggest and Howley believes his side must follow the example set by their northern hemisphere neighbours.

"England have shown the way, and we have to stand up, be counted and follow," he said. "It is very difficult to play with the ball on the back foot, but that's what England made Australia do.

"England's result didn't surprise me, because the quality of the English side is right up there in world terms. But I am sure that Australia will have something up their sleeves, and we will find out how good we are in terms of the team's development - how much we have come on during these past few weeks.

"The French result surprised me more than England's against Australia, so we have to be ready for the Australian backlash that is bound to come."

"I look forward to clashes with Australia," Howley added. "But it's not just about coming up against George Gregan, it's the likes of Owen Finegan, Phil Waugh and Toutai Kefu as well.

"You want to be judged in an arena of world-class players, and while equalling Rob Jones' landmark is another career goal achieved, that goes out of the window on Sunday, because you are totally immersed in looking forward to facing the world's best side."

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