Australia coach Robbie Deans has warned his young team that Sunday's showdown against Ireland at Croke Park represents the litmus test of their development.
The Wallabies defeated England 18-9 at Twickenham last weekend but Deans knows that Six Nations champions Ireland will provide a more rigorous examination of just how far his emerging talents have to go before they are a dominant force in the world game.
Deans has just three players aged 30 or over in his squad and the growing pains of his group were evident in five defeats from six matches during the recent Tri-Nations tournament.
Despite the advantage of playing a Test already this season, Deans is mindful Irish rugby is going through a golden era at both international and domestic level.
"It's going to be a litmus test for us. They're the Six Nations Grand Slam champions, European Cup champions two years in 2008 and 2009 (Munster and Leinster), so there's an awful lot of experience and belief in the group we're playing at Croke Park," Deans said.
"Getting a result last weekend was a great confidence booster for the whole squad, but we know that the standard we produced last week won't be good enough against this Irish team.
"There was an uncertainty about England, in terms of the transitional nature of their development as a team, that doesn't pertain to Ireland.
"The Irish are an established and experienced combination who are used to winning, and expect to win, every time they play.
"Their team has momentum - having won its last eight Test matches - and it has the confidence that mastering the art of winning consistently brings. Playing them now is a great challenge, but one that we are all looking forward to."
Brian O'Driscoll insists he will be as excited in winning his 100th Test cap against Australia as he was when he made his international debut against the Wallabies a decade ago.
The gifted centre can expect a hero's welcome at Croke Park when he leads Ireland out for what will be their first home international since completing the Six Nations Grand Slam in March.
And O'Driscoll insisted the hunger and nerves he experienced as a 20-year-old in Brisbane have not diminished despite a rollercoaster career that has taken in six Tests for the British and Irish Lions and 93 for Ireland - 53 as captain.
"I enjoy it as much now as I did in the early days, though it probably comes more naturally to me now," he said.
"Playing against teams of the calibre of Australia, you have to be on the ball and if you're eating your pre-match meal with no problems then there's an issue there.
"You need to be forcing the food down, you need to have those few nerves in the stomach and a few butterflies. It focuses the mind and just gets you ready for combat.
"I have a great hunger for the game at the moment and I still look forward to pulling on the green jersey."
No-one though should confuse his enthusiasm with naivety and O'Driscoll said there wasn't a team around that could match the wit of the Wallabies.
"Australia are a very smart team, the smartest in world rugby. They think about how to break down defences and have the personnel to do that," he said.
Australia have made just one change to the team that won at Twickenham with 21-year-old David Pocock pushing openside flanker George Smith - one of the ten other players O'Driscoll will join in the 'hundred club' - onto the bench.
Ireland coach Declan Kidney has made two alterations to the side that clinched the grand slam with a 17-15 victory over Wales, with Paddy Wallace in the centres instead of Gordon D'Arcy and 22-year-old prop Cian Healy starting a Test for the first time in place of the injured Marcus Horan.
Copyright 2009 AFP Global Edition
