SYDNEY - NRL converts Cooper Vuna and Joe Tomane will face off in Super Rugby action tonight in what shapes as a Wallabies wing-spot duel for Tuesdays Test against Scotland.
Melbourne flyer Vuna and Brumbies revelation Tomane practised together with the Wallabies train-on squad on Wednesday, but in a mouth-watering match-up, theyll go head-to-head at AAMI Park on tonight with a gold jersey potentially on the line.
Although Queenslander Dom Shipperley is also in the frame to partner Digby Ione on the wing at Hunter Stadium, Vuna and Tomane get one final chance to convince Robbie Deans that theyre ready to become the latest in a long line of league converts to play out wide for the Wallabies.
A crowd pleaser in NRL-mad Newcastle during his stint with the Knights, Vuna says hes approaching tonights match as a Test selection trial, and he wont be leaving anything in reserve when he clashes with Tomane.
Its pretty much a showcase I guess ... if we do clash I wont hold back on anything, said Vuna, who admits to not knowing all the Wallabies players names yet.
Its going to be tough out there, there are players right across the park that are all fighting for a spot in that Scotland game (halfbacks Nick Phipps and Nic White will also match up). Its pretty much trying to find my form and back myself into making that squad.
The pair have only ever played against each other once and that was in an NRL match in 2010 when Tomanes Gold Coast Titans beat Vunas Knights 38-36 in a thriller fittingly played at Tuesdays Test venue, Hunter Stadium in Newcastle.
On that day both players stepped up to the mark and scored a try.