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Super 12 roundup Larkham still out for Brumbies; Waratahs call up Warner
CANBERRA (Reuters) -- Wallaby flyhalf Stephen Larkham has been ruled out of the ACT Brumbies Super 12 team to play the Bulls on Saturday. Larkham had been hoping to make his first appearance of the season but will have to wait at least another week because of ongoing problems with his injured hamstring. "We were hopeful yesterday that he would be fit and ready to play on Saturday night against the Bulls," Brumbies coach Eddie Jones said. "(But) at this stage he is only 95 per cent fit and there was no guarantee that he would be able to play 80 minutes and we feel it is better to rest Steve another week." The Brumbies are the early favorites to win this year's Southern Hemisphere regional championship after finishing runners-up in 2000. They began their new campaign with a 51-16 thrashing of reigning champions the Canterbury Crusaders before splitting their two away games in South Africa. Their opponents Saturday, South Africa's Northern Bulls, have yet to win a match this season and suffered a record 53-7 loss to competition leaders New South Wales Waratahs last weekend. Waratahs call on Warner SYDNEY (Reuters) -- Super 12 leaders the New South Wales Waratahs on Wednesday named Christian Warner to replace injured flyhalf Manuel Edmonds for Sunday's rugby union match against South African side the Cats in Johannesburg. Warner's promotion from the reserves' bench is the only change to the Waratahs side which thrashed South Africa's Northern Bulls 53-7 last Saturday. His inclusion in the starting 15 against the third-placed Cats clears the way for centre Sam Harris to return to the bench after a shoulder injury sustained in a pre-season warmup match. Edmonds will be sidelined for up to six weeks after suffering a medial ligament strain in his knee against the Bulls. Former Wallaby coach Bob Dwyer had also decided to rest big prop Matt Dunning for another week, the New South Wales Rugby Union said in a statement. Dunning has a minor knee strain. Edmonds's injury has been the only black spot for the Waratahs in a bright start to the season. Dwyer's unfashionable Australian state side has a perfect record after the opening three rounds. The Waratahs are the only Australian side never to have made the Super 12 playoffs but have started the 2001 season by playing a riskier, more expansive style of running rugby. The relatively inexperienced side has recorded three straight wins and added a bonus point after try-scoring sprees in each match for a maximum 15 points. They are three points clear of the second-placed Sharks of South Africa in the Super 12 standings. Waratahs: 15-Matthew Burke (captain); 14-Marc Stcherbina, 13-Luke Inman, 12-Nathan Grey, 11-Brendan Williams; 10-Christian Warner, 9-Chris Whitaker; 8-David Lyons, 7-Phil Waugh, 6-Stu Pinkerton, 5-Jono West, 4-Peter Besseling; 3-Rod Moore, 2-Brendan Cannon, 1-Cameron Blades.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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