The Wallabies' road to the Rugby World Cup just hit a major milestone, with coach Eddie Jones on Sunday naming a 34-man squad for the Rugby Championship.
There were a few surprises, with eight uncapped players included, while the omissions were headed fly-half Bernard Foley despite the fact Jones was given the green light to increase his Giteau Law picks from three to five.
And then, of course, there was the historic unveiling of James Slipper and Michael Hooper as co-captains, representing a first for the Wallabies.
Read on as we detail some of the key takeaways from Sunday's announcement.
SAME SAME, BUT DIFFERENT: WHY THE WALLABIES HAVE CO-CAPTAINS
When he was first unveiled as Wallabies coach in January, Jones made a point of saying he thought the team would need a range of leaders, a point he affirmed in April when his leadership group was confirmed on the Gold Coast.
That list included both Hooper and Slipper, as well as Nic White, Jed Holloway, Allan Alaalatoa and Andrew Kellaway, so it was always thought that Jones would appoint at least one official captain from among that group.
What will have surprised many, however, is that Jones has opted for official co-captains, when perhaps he could have adopted the same rotating setup he had with England last year, when Courtney Lawes was skipper for the three-Test series in Australia while Owen Farrell led the side during the November Tests.
But with both Slipper and Hooper under pressure from youngsters Angus Bell and Fraser McReight, co-captains leaves Jones the opportunity to make the hard decision to leave either of his skippers out should he deem it necessary, or make a drastic substitution -- which history will confirm the coach has no hesitation to do so.
"Well we want to do things differently, that's to start with, we want to change the Wallabies and having not worked day to day with these guys over the last three months -- we've been having a number of leadership meetings by Zoom and when possible in person -- [but] I think the combination of Hoops and Slips together gives us a very strong apex to the leadership.
"Then underneath that there's a group of players that are going to be really important to support them, but I think the combination of character and style between Hoops and Slips [is good], and you don't get two more experienced players in the world in Test rugby, so that's a big advantage for us.
"So you can see by the squad that we've got a good core of experienced players but we've also got some young guys coming through that are going to push the barrel, so I think together they can do a really great job."
Jones also revealed to Channel 9's Sport Sunday that he had spent a day with Sydney Swans during the week, picking coach John Longmire's brain as to how the club's co-captaincy setup operated.
DONALDSON A FORTUNATE BENEFIACIARY OF FULLBACK MIRE
If there was one name among Jones squad that was going to raise some serious eyebrows it was always going to be Ben Donaldson, particularly after the Waratahs No. 10 had such a miserable Super Rugby Pacific season.
Donaldson appeared to be well down on confidence throughout much of the year, but what was more notable was his failure to nail the big moments in the Waratahs' lacklustre season, highlighted by the kick out of the full when the game was in the balance against the Brumbies in Canberra.
As a fly-half, Donaldson had seemingly slipped down to No. 5 or even No. 6 in the pecking order. But his ability to also play fullback, just as he did in the Waratahs' quarterfinal with the Blues after coach Darren Coleman made a late change to his lineup, is obviously something Jones values.
Donaldson was included among three "utility players" alongside Josh Kemeny -- who Jones wants to have the ability to play wing as well as across the back-row -- and Dylan Pietsch, the Waratahs playmaker getting the nod with Andrew Kellaway listed among the "rehab group".
Kellaway's calf injury leaves only Tom Wright and Reece Hodge as the fullback options for the first Test against the Springboks in Pretoria, and while Donaldson still looks at long odds to be among the World Cup touring party announced in mid-August, Jones will be hoping his inclusion on Sunday is the tonic that spurs the 24-year-old on.
FOLEY'S OMISSION SEES GITEAU LAW SELECTIONS AT 5, AFFIRMS GORDON'S STANDING
Rugby Australia's Overseas Player Selection Policy [OPSP] -- otherwise known as the Giteau Law -- has been a hot topic of conversation all year, and even back to last year when Dave Rennie used five different players throughout the Test season despite the protocols limiting to three players per series or tournament.
It was always thought that there was to be some wiggle room again this year, and Jones later indicated that he was going to front the board to plead his case to be able to select more players from outside Super Rugby.
While it is not open slather as some had predicted for the World Cup, Jones on Sunday named Quade Cooper, Samu Kerevi, Marika Koroibete, Will Skelton, and the man who rocketed into contention only this year, Richie Arnold.
Kerevi, Koroibete and Skelton were the three players named under the current Giteau Law framework, with Rugby Australia granting Jones' dispensation to then select Cooper and Arnold from outside the policy.
While Jones ducked questions about exactly where the Giteau Law was, he indicated that Bernard Foley, who was considered a certainty for selection in Sunday's squad, could still play a role moving forward.
"I haven't really thought about that [Giteau law limit], all I know is that the team we put in got approved," Jones said.
Pushed on whether he had also sought an exemption for Foley, Jones again wouldn't be drawn onto exactly where the OPSP was at.
"No that was the team we selected and that team got approved."
Reports suggest that, for now, RA is loathed to allow more than five players to be picked from overseas, concerned that any further expansion will shift the dial too far and result in more departures to clubs outside Australia, with players confident that their Test days might not be done as a result.
Foley's omission, meanwhile, also confirms the high regard in which Jones holds Rebels No. 10 Carter Gordon, who was the standout Australian player in Super Rugby this season.
While Cooper remains the clear No. 1 option at fly-half, Gordon is likely to see at least some rugby off the bench against either the Springboks or Pumas as Jones won't want to run the risk of having him come in cold if the 35-year-old Cooper is cut down by injury once more.
"Quade's a different sort of player and if we can get him back to his best he becomes a really competitive edge for us," Jones said.
"Young Carter Gordon's done well and Donaldson fills the utility role for us. And there could well be opportunitIes for Foles [Foley] down the track and we'll just have to wait and see."
VALETINI VIEWED AS NO. 8 WHILE BLINDSIDE RACE IS WIDE OPEN
Judging by the omission of the Reds' Harry Wilson and with Waratahs young gun Langi Gleeson in the rehab group, it appears that Rob Valetini will be the Wallabies No. 8, rather than someone who could also be used at No. 6.
At blindside, Jones nominated Jed Holloway, Rob Leota and Tom Hooper as the contenders to start against the Springboks, the Wallabies coach indicated he favoured a jumping No. 6 which would seemingly see either Holloway or Hooper as the front-runners; Leota is likely a strong bench option, particularly given he is yet to play a game in 2023.
Tom Hooper's selection in the 34-man squad, meanwhile, was predicted by ESPN during the week; the Brumbies' forward's ability to play in the second-row and, as of the semifinal loss to the Chiefs, right across the back-row, making him an invaluable commodity for the run to the World Cup.
"I think when you're playing against South Africa, and that's what we've got in the first game, the lineout's so important," Jones said of No. 6. "You've got to be able to win your ball well and put pressure on their ball and not allow them to win the ball where they want to win.
"They're a very 'play-by-territory' type team, and they like to win the ball in certain areas and we've got to be good enough to be able to take that away from them and win the ball in other areas. And then for us to win the ball [at lineout] so it just doesn't allow them to rush all the time. So having a jumping 6 is not absolute, but it's probably going to be close to the mark.
"And we've got three good options there; Leota, Jed and Hooper; Tom Hooper's done really well in Super Rugby, he's come from basically nowhere, halfway during the year he was walking his dog [injured] and now he's in the Wallabies squad."
It sets up a situation where the Wallabies could potentially field two Hooper's in the same back-row, though with little confusion as to who's who between Michael and Tom given their contrasting frames.
"My son's Thomas Hooper, and now we've got a Thomas Hooper coming in, so my son's in with me, which is good," Michael Hooper joked.
"I haven't had anything to do with Tommy; I've seen him play and I'll echo the words that Eddie was talking about, he looks rock solid. He had the 7 jersey on in the semi, big frame, gets through a lot of physical work."
SIZE UP FRONT IS THE ORDER OF THE DAY
While Donaldson's selection was a genuine surprise, upon hearing Jones' "utility player" logic and with the lack of depth at fullback the Waratahs' playmaker's inclusion at least made some sense.
But there was a genuine bolter up front in the selection of Reds hooker, who was preferred ahead of the Brumbies' Lachie Lonergan.
Lonergan had been one of former Wallabies coach Dave Rennie's preferred options but suddenly finds himself at No. 4 in the pecking order behind Dave Porecki, Jordan Uelese and now Faessler.
It's true Faessler had an excellent season for Queensland, but it wasn't demonstrably better than that which Lonergan delivered in Canberra. As such, Faessler's selection appears to be down to the size factor, with the Reds hooker tipping the scales 8kgs heavier than Lonergan, according to their Super Rugby bios.
Jones has made it clear that he feels size is going to be hugely important in France later this year -- this can be applied to Tom Hooper's inclusion as well -- particularly when the tournament reaches its knockout stage.
Lonergan's World Cup dream isn't shattered as a result and perhaps the heat might be more on Uelese than Faessler, with the Rebels hooker's lineout throwing not the standout strength of his game.