NSW Waratahs winger Peter Betham will join the Qantas Wallabies 32-man Castrol EDGE Rugby Championship squad, with a hamstring injury sidelining ACT Brumbies flyer Henry Speight for a month.
Speight, who becomes eligible to represent Australia from 11 September, suffered the injury in the second half of the Brumbies recent Asteron Life Super Rugby Semi-Final clash against the Waratahs at Allianz Stadium.
Betham replaces Speight in the Qantas Wallabies squad and will now push for further representative honours after earning his international debut for Australia in the third Bledisloe Cup Test against New Zealand in Dunedin last year.
“It’s disappointing for Henry but I’ve got no doubt that he’ll go back and work hard during the rehab process to get his injury healed before he becomes eligible to play for Australia in mid-September,” Qantas Wallabies coach Ewen McKenzie said.
“On the flip side, we bring in a guy in Peter Betham who has had significant exposure to our program over the past year and who made his Test debut against New Zealand in 2013.
“He’s a quality team member on and off the field and will be determined to make the most of the opportunity he has been given.”
The Qantas Wallabies, minus the Waratahs players participating in the Super Rugby Final, will assemble on Sunday 3 August to begin their week-long Bush2Bledisloe regional road trip across Dubbo, Orange, Bathurst and Penrith.
The Waratahs representatives in the Qantas Wallabies squad will join the team in Bathurst on Wednesday 6 August.
Tickets for the 2014 Castrol EDGE Rugby Championship, including the opening match against the All Blacks at ANZ Stadium in Sydney on Saturday 16 August, are on sale now via Ticketek.