Wallabies’ halfback Nic White says he never dreamed of getting the opportunity to represent his country so close to home.
Born in Scone and raised in Maitland, White, who claims to be a local in both towns, is preparing to be part of the Australian side when it takes on Argentina at McDonald Jones Stadium on Saturday night.
“There’s a lot of extended friends and family that probably haven’t been to a game ever or for a long time – that will make this weekend pretty special for me personally,” White told the media in Merewether this morning.
“I’ve played there (McDonald Jones Stadium) once, maybe I was 10 years old, I don’t know what it was called then but it was in the Paul Harragon Cup.”
The Wallabies are preparing for a tough battle, with Argentina’s 25-15 win against the All Blacks over the weekend turning heads across the globe.
It’s also put the Wallabies, who are coming off a win against New Zealand, a step closer to becoming Tri Nations champions.
Australia has only lost twice to Argentina at home in 16 games – in 1983 and 2018.
White said the side was confident of not adding to that tally.
“We know we have to be at our best in order to beat them and that’s an exciting challenge,” he said.
“We’ve got a plan and we always back ourselves whoever we are playing, so we are going to have to be at our best to beat them and we are preparing well and back ourselves to hit our straps on the weekend.”
That’s despite being aware the Pumas have an Australian ally on their side, with former Wallabies’ coach Michael Cheika part of the Pumas’ coaching team.
“I think Cheik’s one of those personalities in rugby, it would be a real shame if he wasn’t around,” White said.
“I’m stoked as a rugby lover that’s in the game, you just have to see what he did with the Wallabies for a number of years and what he’s doing with the Argentinians.
“He’s a great bloke, a smart operator, and it would be a shame if he wasn’t around some sort of team.
“It’s unfortunate we have to come up against him but I’m sure after the game we will have a chance to have a smile, a laugh and a beer.”
With tickets almost sold out for the clash, White is encouraging fans not to miss out.
“It’s not too often rugby comes up this way, so grab a ticket if you can, because you might be a while waiting for another game.”
Visit Ticketmaster’s website to book tickets.
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