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Rugby Australia and New Zealand compete for Rugby Championship medals in Perth final

Australia and New Zealand will meet again on Saturday at the Perth Stadium, after a brutal battle at Eden Park. Both teams are hoping to claim, even temporarily, the Rugby Championship Trophy.

South Africa will not be able to celebrate their victory, as they must wait until after the match against Argentina, at Twickenham, in order to win back-to-back championships.

The prospect of a showdown between the two teams in Perth should not dampen the excitement. Perth's much improved hosts will be looking to give prop James Slipper a fitting send-off in his final and 151st international.

Scott Robertson’s All Blacks will, on the other hand, be desperate to maintain their traditional dominance against their trans-Tasman competitors.

New Zealand has already secured the bilateral Bledisloe cup with a 33-24 victory at Eden Park, but it will still want to end the Rugby Championship on a positive note after a sometimes sobering campaign.

The All Blacks' record defeat in Wellington against a revitalized South Africa and their first ever loss in Argentina to the Pumas, made them seem like a fading superpower half way through the World Cup cycle.

New Zealand's egos would suffer another crushing blow if they were to lose the match against Australia, who is their usual punching bag. Robertson and his team would also be under increased pressure.

Joe Schmidt has made the Wallabies happier despite their losing record of 2-3 in this tournament.

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Schmidt's blowout losses in his first season as coach are just a year old, but they seem like a bygone era.

The fans have been packed to their seats for home matches in this season, but they are more likely to be disappointed by the results than hopeful.

Andrea Piardi's capricious officiating and a late yellow-card could have prevented Australia from leaving Eden Park with the Bledisloe and a chance to reclaim it for the first 23 years.

They left with a feeling of being aggrieved and the 10th consecutive loss to the All Blacks. This may be useful for settling the score in Perth.

Schmidt told journalists on Thursday that if we were to win this week we would finish at the very least second.

"That's incredible when compared to the last season or even season before.

I do believe there is growth in the team. I cannot guarantee it will be linear, but I can guarantee the effort.

The additions of Will Skelton from France and Rob Valetini on the bench, after he missed Eden Park due to a calf injury, will make Australia stronger.

Schmidt gambled that Tane Edmed, who had a shaky debut at the Sydney loss to the Pumas in his number 10 jersey in the absence of flyhalf James O'Connor after he was benched for a full match at Eden Park due to some costly mistakes with the boot.

Robertson also has thrown caution out the window, dropping Billy Proctor at centre in favor of Quinn Tupaea. Leicester Fainga’anuku will be playing on the wings for the first time since the World Cup 2023.

New Zealand appears as vulnerable as ever, which could make the Wallabies as dangerous as ever. (Reporting from Ian Ransom, Melbourne; Editing done by Ken Ferris).

(source: Reuters)