Props Albert Anae and Ben Daley both come off the bench into the starting front-row, while scrumhalf Jason Ryan gets his first start of the tournament.

Andrew Barrett moves from fullback to wing, with Pat McCabe coming in at fullback. Blair Connor, with four tries already in the tournament, will be used as an impact player from the bench.

Coach Mooney said the team will be looking to finish with a flourish after the disappointment of not making the final.

“This playoff match has been difficult to prepare for mentally as the squad is really disappointed not to be in the final and have the opportunity to defend our world crown,” he said. 

“Although, we have an opportunity to finish the tournament on a positive note by finishing third and we intend on doing just that.

“We’ve brought in some fresh faces to the starting line-up, including a new front row, as the Welsh are very strong up front and they’ll be eager to claim another big-name scalp at this tournament.”

New Zealand and South Africa will contest the Final at Ravenhill in Belfast, with kick off at 7.30 local time (4:30am Sunday AEST).

Team:
Albert Anae
James Hanson
Ben Daley
Sam Wykes (VC)
Robert Simmons
Ben McCalman
Rodney Maa
Michael Uoka
Jason Ryan
Brett Gillespie (C)
Alfred Mafi
Mitchell Inman
Rowan Kellam
Andrew Barrett
Pat McCabe
 Reserves

Daniel Penca
Tetera Faulkner
Daniel Palmer
Adam Campbell
Jared Hargreaves
Chris Harkins
Daniel Robinson
Jeremy Sua
Blair Connor
Peter Betham
John Grant
Head Coach – Phil Mooney

Assistant Coach – Mark Bell