According to the Wallabies camp, open side flanker David Pocock could be the key to their chances of victory against South Africa at Suncorp Stadium on Saturday night as he is the only genuine ball-gatherer on the field.
By naming Ryan Kankowski at flanker the Springboks have chosen a player that many are considering a second No.8 and with neither he nor partner Schalk Burger considered break-down specialists, the Australians are hoping to have an edge in their 22-year-old ball-winner, Pocock.
Pocock established himself as a genuine world-class forward against the Springboks during the corresponding Tri Nations match in Brisbane last year, and against the grizzled and physical South Africans his influence will be vital.
Earlier in the week, Wallabies assistant coach Jim Williams was glowing in his praise of the young Australian flanker.
"I think he certainly can (be a point of difference on Saturday)," he said.
"He's a quality player and a class player and a point of difference player and he's shown that in the past for us and we're obviously looking forward for him to make that impact around the breakdown again."
On the day before their clash with the Boks, Australian skipper Rocky Elsom was another predicting a dominant showing from Pocock at the breakdown.
"He's performed really well so far this year," he said.
"He's the only genuine on-baller out there and he'll do a really good job of that."
However the humble Zimbabwean-born Pocock was playing down the significance of his output, and remained wary of the danger in facing a Springboks line-up desperate for redemption after two first up losses to New Zealand.
"In the modern game everyone's got that (ball-fetching) ability," he said.
"A lot of it depends on the way the ref interprets the break down on the night."
"South Africa is such a proud rugby nation, and having lived there for a bit you know how much it means to the public and how much it must mean to be a Springbok."
"To lose three games in a row for them is unheard of – it just doesn't happen – so we're expecting a very fired up Springbok team to come out of that dressing room."
Since making his Test debut in 2008 against the All Blacks, Pocock has continued to develop at the world level and strong performances in 2009 and the early stages of 2010 have many predicting the young forward has the potential to carve out a truly special career in the green and gold.
The talent and physical presence of the man are beyond question, and encouragingly for Wallabies fans, it appears Pocock has the maturity and mental strength to match his physical gifts.
When speaking with media in the build-up to the all-important Test, the Australian No.7 spoke of his desire to develop into a tough and consistent performer in the mould of former Wallaby great George Smith.
"If you look at George Smith and what he brought was that consistency week to week and that ability to back up," he said.
"You always just knew that George would be there. You knew what you'd get, he'd front up."
"That's been something I've been working on and something that I hopefully I can continue to improve that ability from week to week to produce the same effort and to be really consistent."