Bledisloe Cup: Wallabies captain Harry Wilson eager to send retiring Test great James Slipper out on a high

Wallabies skipper Harry Wilson says they are determined to send retiring Test great James Slipper out on a high as they look to end New Zealand’s 10-game Bledisloe Cup winning streak. Australia have not beaten the All Blacks since Brisbane in 2020, but Saturday evening’s showdown with their biggest rivals at Optus Stadium looms as the biggest chance to halt New Zealand’s recent dominance over them. There is plenty on offer for both teams, with neither mathematically ruled out of winning the Rugby Championship provided they win on Saturday and South Africa then lose to Argentina. But there will be plenty of emotion from those in gold as loosehead prop Slipper prepares to bow out of the international arena after his 151st appearance for the Wallabies. Slipper’s parents, wife and daughters have flown out to be there for his final game. No prop has played as many Tests as the 36 year-old Slipper, who is the third-most capped international player of all-time and Wilson said they wanted to send their beloved teammate out on a high note. “Slips has been unbelievable the last 15 years of the Wallabies, but the last five or six years I’ve been involved, he’s everyone’s older brother in the group,” he said. “He looks after everyone, everyone in the group loves him and in my time leading the group, without having Slippy here, somebody who’s helped me the whole way, I don’t know how I would’ve done it. “He’s always there, giving you feedback, offering advice, trying to help you out in any way possible and he’s the ultimate team man. “We love him to death, and his service to the gold jersey has been unbelievable and to get to go out there one final time with Slippy, it’s going to be an honour and we can’t wait to go out there and put a performance in for him to be proud of. “When you’ve got someone like James Slipper playing his last game for our country, he’s done so much for so long, it’d be crazy for us not to really lean into that.” The All Blacks’ win at Eden Park last Saturday means they have equalled their own longest winning streak against Australia, set from 2008-2010 and could set a new record in Perth of 11 unbeaten matches. But the Wallabies have been steadfast in their focus on themselves and Wilson said they were not using the streak as motivation. “We were pretty close last weekend, and we know where we need to fix up from that and we’ve got a lot of confidence coming into this weekend,” he said. “They’ve been a world class team for many years now, they’ve got a lot of good players, a good forward pack and they’re always up for the Wallabies encounter. “The Bledisloe mean so much to the two teams, and they’ve obviously been able to retain it this year but in saying that, I feel as if this team’s in the right direction, and even in those 10 losses, there has been a lot of matches where it’s been pretty neck and neck.”