Everyone has a take on Suaalii’s best role, but only Les Kiss’ view matters. And he has shared it

It’s the debate that won’t go away but Wallabies coach Les Kiss says he will persist with Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii at outside centre.

Whether the cross-code star regains his place in the team to meet Argentina on Sunday, however, could be a different question altogether.

“That competition we have in those centres now is cool,” Kiss said. “Some good people miss out because it’s going well. But we want that. I want that.”

Kiss and the Wallabies arrived in Buenos Aires on Monday, ahead of the first Test against the Pumas on Sunday morning in Jujuy ; a mountainous province at Argentina’s north-west tip.

After starting his coaching tenure with two wins over Japan, the job only gets harder for Kiss, both externally and internally.

The Pumas are ranked No.7, one spot above the Wallabies, but the Argentinian side has the capacity to overturn top five sides: they beat the British and Irish Lions and New Zealand last year, and in their most recent Test in early August, they lost narrowly to the Springboks 17-10.

The Wallabies have a mixed record against the Pumas in recent years, at home and away, including a record 67-27 defeat, in their last game in Argentina in 2024.

The difficulty will start for Kiss and his staff, however, when they sit down to select the team.

After making several changes for the second Japan Test - due to injury and tactical rotation - the side duly thumped the Brave Blossoms .

A handful of those “new” players staked strong claims to stay in the side, even with some top talent due to return in Jujuy.

Some can potentially be squeezed into the match day 23, with Kiss flagging the combination of openside flankers Carlo Tizzano and Fraser McReight may again be deployed.

But other spots will require a hard decision, and the midfield is the toughest. The starting duo for the last two years, Len Ikitau and Suaalii, have returned from injury that kept them out of the Townsville Test.

But Hunter Paisami and Isaac Henry were strong in the win, and the possibility of Kiss opting for a new combination is a live one.

“It’s cool, isn’t it? I like it that there’s competition. These guys are good mates, and they’re connected,” Kiss said.