“He knows the challenge is there, he didn’t feel entitled to anything beforehand, he just wants to fight hard and earn his position.
“One of the real strong things for us is the quality of options it gives us at 10, 15 and 12 to have extra depth and options in those areas.
Carter Gordon.Credit: Getty Images
“We’ve got two big travel schedules in the season, we’ve got byes that don’t work in ideal spaces, so we’re going to have to manage our resources and have those options available.
Gordon leaves the NRL after managing just one game for the Gold Coast Titans, having suffered a cerebrospinal fluid leak which ruled him out for the majority of the campaign.
His immediate call-up into the Wallabies squad has thrust him into the frame for the five-eighth duties come the 2027 World Cup, with his selection coming at the expense of Lynagh, who has been sidelined in a bid to overcome a host of niggling injury concerns.
“He’s going well, he’s actually got a hamstring issue that’s just hanging on, and that’s the main reason – he hasn’t been able to get out there and train and play, so he hasn’t had a lot of volume in his running, getting over the ball and kicking,” Kiss said of Lynagh.
“We’ve got an opportunity in the next two weeks just to work on that, we’ve got a plan with RA [Rugby Australia] to make sure we get that right. He’ll have a leave period, and then a full preseason with us.”
Gordon first landed on the Reds’ radar as a seven-year-old, blossoming through their academy before taking his opportunity with the now fallen Melbourne Rebels.
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Kiss did not believe it was premature to be bringing the 24-year-old into the Wallabies fold so soon after his rugby league defection, adamant he would pick up the 15-man code again as if he had never left.
“To tell you the truth, it’s been an absolute rapid four or five days. I think there was always something in Carter’s mind he would like to come back one day, but from my perspective this has just accelerated in the last four or five days,” Kiss said.
“I had a brief chat with Carter – he’s excited as you would imagine, and really looking forward to getting back and working hard. There’s no entitlement there.
“There’s obviously an opportunity to get rugby straight away, so that’s important getting him into the mix straight away. I think the environment he’s going to be moving into straight away is pretty ideal.”
