RUGBY:WALLABY OUTHALF Quade Cooper missed training because of illness yesterday in a blow to the home side on the eve of the Tri-Nations opener in Sydney this morning.

Cooper has been restored to the team after being rested for last week’s upset loss to Samoa and was expected to fire Australia back to winning ways at the Olympic Stadium.

A spokesman for the team said the 23-year-old was suffering from a stomach illness, but captain Rocky Elsom said the back should be fit to face the Springboks.

“If he’s not feeling that well, it’s probably a good move not to train, but I think he’ll be fine tomorrow,” the flanker said.

Fullback Kurtley Beale stepped into the outhalf position in training and would be the favourite to take the number 10 shirt if Cooper does not recover.

In the wake of the Samoa defeat, a season that started with talk of a first Tri-Nations title since 2001 and a third World Cup title has become a quest for respectability.

“I think after the outing we had, our emphasis has been on us,” Elsom said. “When you have a performance that didn’t go the way you wanted, you want to get out and play the next day. It’s only been six days, so we’re pretty keen to get out there.”

AUSTRALIA: K Beale; J O’Connor, A Ashley-Cooper, P McCabe, D Ioane; Q Cooper, W Genia; S Kepu, S Moore, B Alexander, R Simmons, J Horwill, R Elsom, D Pocock, B McCalman. Replacements: S Faingaa, P Cowan, N Sharpe, M Hodgson, S Higginbotham, N Phipps, A Faingaa.

SOUTH AFRICA: G Aplon; B Basson, J de Jongh, W Olivier, L Mvovo; M Steyn, R Pienaar; D Greyling, J Smit, W Kruger, F van der Merwe, A Hargreaves, D Stegmann, D Rossouw, A Johnson. Replacements: C Ralepelle, CJ van der Linde, R Kankowski, J Deysel, C McLeod, A Jacobs, P Lambie.