Wales tour of Australia
McBryde wary of Wallabies' pack
ESPN Staff
May 25, 2012
Wales forwards coach Robin McBryde, Wales press conference, Rugby World World Cup, Wellington Regional Stadium, Wellington, New Zealand, October 7, 2011
Robin McBryde has sounded a note of caution to his side ahead of their trip to Australia © Getty Images
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Wales forwards coach Robin McBryde is adamant that his side will not have it easy against the Wallabies' pack despite their historic weakness in that facet of the game.

England have enjoyed supremacy over the Australian pack in the past and despite Wales possessing a strong engine room of their own, McBryde has sounded a note of caution to his charges ahead of their three-Test tour in June.

"The scrum is an area of the game Australia have worked very hard on, and they have gradually got better and better," McBryde said. "They are well led by Stephen Moore, who is one of the best hookers in the world, in my opinion. They have been very strong in the set-piece for a while now.

"We are all just really looking forward to the challenge."

Wales head coach Warren Gatland is expected to miss the tour after fracturing his ankles last month in a horrendous incident in New Zealand so it will be Rob Howley fronting up the coaching team. Despite Gatland's absence, McBryde has tipped his side to surprise a few doubters with a strong performance against the Wallabies.

"Momentum is behind us since the World Cup, and we managed to keep that going through the Six Nations," McBryde added. "I suppose everyone is waiting to see how we are going to react to that first loss we have as a group, but until we suffer that first loss, who knows?

"The players have created their own little bit of history, and they are keen for more. I have seen reports in the papers about it being a long season, but that hasn't been raised by the players at all. The players have come in to training and given their all. There is a huge carrot out there - to go down to Australia and hopefully win a series. If we win one of the games (Tests), it is something we haven't been able to do down there for a number of years. We have got three bites of the cherry."

It is 43 years since Wales beat the Wallabies in Australia, but they will travel with a powerful squad captained by World Cup and Six Nations leader Sam Warburton. Warburton is set to be among an advance party of 15 players that will head to Australia with Edwards next Thursday, while the remainder of a current 38-man group will travel on Sunday week after tackling the Barbarians in Cardiff 24 hours earlier.

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