Wallabies prop Allan Alaalatoa rubbished allegations on players faking injuries

Senior Wallabies prop Allan Alaalatoa has refuted claims that they faked front-row injuries to avoid scrummaging against South Africa in their recent Rugby Championship Test in Perth.

Reports indicate that SA Rugby has asked World Rugby to investigate the injuries suffered by Australia's props, which led to uncontested scrums after the Wallabies lost all three of their front-row players—Angus Bell, James Slipper, and Alaalatoa—during the match.

Bell sustained a cut above his eye, and Alaalatoa did not return after halftime due to a failed head injury assessment (HIA). Slipper also sustained a head injury later in the game.

Match officials concluded that the lack of fit props made it unsafe to continue with contested scrums. The South Africans still cruised to victory, overpowering the Wallabies in the second half to secure a 30-12 win.

"Do they think I was trying to fake an HIA or something?" Alaalatoa asked.

"Mate, we want to scrum, that's what we want to do, especially as front-rowers, and that's a game where you want to take on that challenge, you don't want to shy away from that.

"We're at a stage in our team where we want to keep growing and keep fronting up against the best, so you never want to shy away from that."

Having started the tournament with back to back defeats against South Africa, the Wallabies sealed a thrilling win over Argentina in the third round with a thrilling 20-19 margin. They will now face Argentina again in the fourth round on Saturday at Estadio Brigadier General Estanislao Lopez.