Expecting a South African bomb barrage in their Rugby Championship Test, coach Dave Rennie says he's picked Reece Hodge at fullback to help the Wallabies win the air battle.
Rennie made six changes to his run-on side to take on the Springboks at Adelaide Oval on Saturday afternoon as they look to rebound from an ugly loss to Argentina in their last outing.
Noah Lolesio hasn't played since the England series but has replaced axed five-eighth James O'Connor, with Rennie saying their other play-making option in recalled veteran Bernard Foley wasn't "Test ready".
The Wallabies have also been bolstered by the return from injury of a swag of players including centre Hunter Paisami, reserve back Andrew Kellaway, and hookers Folau Fainga'a and Dave Porecki.
Rennie said the "booming boot" of Hodge, who has played 57 Tests, was behind his selection ahead of Tom Wright, who has moved to the wing.
Rennie felt the Melbourne utility was well-suited to countering South Africa's plan to play a territory game.
"South Africa's got a good kicking game and they will back their D (defence) so we've got to make sure we can win that air battle," Rennie said on Thursday.
"Hodgey at the back gives us a big kicking game, which we reckon will be important.
"His ability to identify space and find grass in behind them with his booming boot is a big part of the reason we picked him.
"We certainly know what's coming and we're going to have to get in front of that, bring a lot of physicality and kick smart."
Rennie said it was Lolesio's chance to nail down the No.10 jersey with Quade Cooper injured and the World Cup looming.
"We've still got confidence in him but obviously with Quade out of the picture James got a crack last time and so Noah's got an opportunity to try and cement that jersey," Rennie said.
With South Africa boasting a massive pack, Rennie is demanding more from powerhouse Queensland prop Taniela Tupou.
"We need more out of him, he's well aware of that and he is pretty disappointed with his effort in the second (Argentina) Test.
"We know he's a very good scrummager but we expect him to dominate with and without the ball as well and he was disappointing in those areas, so the repercussion for that is that he comes off the bench."
Tighthead prop Allan Alaalatoa will start after leaving Argentina for personal reasons while lock Matt Philip returns to partner Rory Arnold.
The Australians are looking to maintain their impressive record on home soil against South Africa - they are unbeaten in their last seven clashes - with their last loss in 2013.
They have won their previous two Tests at Adelaide Oval, where they last played in 2004.
Each of the four Rugby Championship teams has a win apiece and Rennie wants to see his team get off to a fast start to pile the pressure on the visitors.
"It's massive for us - to bury the disappointment of the previous game and also the Rugby Championship is pretty even so it's a chance to stay in the fight for the trophy.
"We've had an excellent week of preparation with a pretty brutal review, a fair bit of honesty and an excellent reaction so we need to see that on Saturday."
Wallabies: Reece Hodge, Tom Wright, Len Ikitau, Hunter Paisami, Marika Koroibete, Noah Lolesio, Nic White, Rob Valetini, Fraser McReight, Jed Holloway, Matt Philip, Rory Arnold, Allan Alaalatoa, Folau Fainga'a, James Slipper (c). Res: Dave Porecki, Scott Sio, Taniela Tupou, Darcy Swain, Rob Leota, Pete Samu, Tate McDermott, Andrew Kellaway.
