THE Queensland Outback Barbarians have shaken it up for their clash against Houston, naming 10 new starters in its line-up for Thursday night (US time).
Coach Mick Bishop said it was all about giving skilled rugby players from across country Queensland experience in representative rugby right from the kick off.
“We have a wonderful depth of talent in this squad and have the luxury of being able to select quite a few very handy combinations,” Bishop said.
“We’re out to put in our best effort so it’s important everyone knows how to handle that first 10-20 minutes when there can still be plenty of nerves.”
The match will be held at the British School of Houston at 8.30pm on Thursday evening US time (11.30am Friday Queensland time).
The run-on team is:
1. Cameron Knights. 2. Mark Neilsen. 3. Angus Dunn. 4. Sean Fitzpatrick. 5. Andrew Neilsen. 6. Joe Dawson. 7. Ellis Jensen. 8. Tubby Heron. 9. Cameron Rosamond. 10. Adam Ebert. 11. Dudley Miles. 12. Adam Conway. 13. Sam Fairweather. 14. Ethan Hoffman. 15. David West.
Given the game’s unlimited interchange it is expected the majority of players will gain time on the field during the game.
Prior to the game the Outback Barbarians will visit the Houston Space Centre. Traveling from Dallas on Tuesday, the team saw the impressive Kyle Field stadium at Texas A&M and lunched on barbecue beef ribs with Wes Klett, one of the owners of Performance Feeds in Australia. That night the team watched the Houston Astros play the San Francisco Giants in major league baseball.
Following Thursday night’s game the focus will be on New Orleans, the only team to have ever beaten the Outback Barbarians twice.
The Dyno Nobel Queensland Outback Barbarian’s other major sponsors include Haulmark, Ray White Rural, Inventia, NAB Agribusiness, Crop Care, Hamburg Sud, Rentokil, Wellard Rural Exports, Cobram Olive Oil, Redback boots, Bundaberg Molasses, Monsanto, Ian Weigh Toyota, Performance Feeds and Mongrel Boots.
- Queensland Country Life’s Mark Phelps is traveling with the Outback Barbarians.