Wilson keeps Wallabies tight-lipped on All Blacks' vulnerability ahead of Bledisloe opener at Eden Park

Wallabies captain Harry Wilson refused to be drawn on whether the All Blacks are vulnerable ahead of the Bledisloe Cup opener at Eden Park, shutting down the question at his captain’s run media session on Friday with a line that doubled as a team motto.

“We’ve just got to worry about ourselves, mate. I’m not giving them any more ammo,” Wilson said. “We just want to go out there and play some good footy; we’ve prepared well, we feel like we’re playing some good footy, and there’s a lot of confidence in this group. We’ve got an almighty Test here at Eden Park.”

The restraint is understandable given the backdrop. The 2026 Bledisloe Cup arrives with unusual intrigue: the All Blacks are nursing a three-game losing streak, while the Wallabies are riding a recent win over world champions South Africa under Les Kiss. Australia has not lifted the Bledisloe Cup since 2002 — when Wilson was two years old — making the temptation to talk up their chances all the greater, and the discipline to resist it all the more deliberate.

Wilson acknowledged that preparing for New Zealand is a fundamentally different exercise from preparing for the Springboks, even with four Tests against each side to draw on from the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series.

“The preparation’s been very different. With South Africa, we all know it’s a lot of set piece, high balls, and they didn’t play as much footy as New Zealand. Whereas we know there’s probably going to be a lot of long phases and the ball going side to side, and we’re preparing for that.”

He also flagged that the Springboks’ approach against New Zealand has provided useful tactical reference points. “South Africa have painted some really good pictures that, if we can do it well, it should really help us tomorrow night,” Wilson said, adding that the Wallabies expect a “really tough set piece battle” despite the shift in tactical emphasis.

The four-Test series against South Africa, Wilson suggested, has served a dual purpose — not only delivering a confidence-building victory but offering a detailed scouting lens on the All Blacks’ evolving game plan under Dave Rennie. Whether that preparation translates into a first Bledisloe triumph in 23 years remains to be seen, but the Wallabies are clearly intent on arriving at Eden Park with nothing given away.