'Ashley-Cooper out of line'

Giteau, who came through his team’s training session at Zwartkops unscathed on Thursday, immediately distanced himself from the comments made by Wallaby team-mate Ashley-Cooper which are certainly set to give the Bulls more motivation ahead of Saturday’s Vodacom Super 14 game.

Cooper called the Bulls “parasites” and said in an interview with the Canberra Times they played “such a parasitic game of footy, their game plan, they just rely on putting all the pressure on you and wait for you to slip up.”

But Giteau quickly slapped his team-mates words down, and indicated there was a certain bit of unhappiness about giving the Bulls some motivation ahead of the clash. Giteau even went as far as to call Ashley-Cooper “dumb”.

“I don’t agree that they play like parasites. Adam can be dumb at times and say the wrong things. They’ve been top of the table in Super rugby and Currie Cup for a number of years, so they’re obviously doing something right.

“They are certainly a side who can punish you if you make mistakes, so you just have to limit those.”

The Brumbies playmaker was happy that he got through the training sessions well but said he was looking forward to the challenge of facing Morné Steyn again.

“I’m looking to the game, a little disappointed at how the season started for me, but I’m looking forward to it.” “I’ve got a little bit of extra weight on at the moment, which never hurts for someone my size. But I’ve been able to get a bit of extra work done.

“I’ve played him (Morné) a few times, and played with him for the Barbarians, where I saw a different side of him. He is obviously a world class kicker who can dictate a game tactically as well, so for me, it is more about how the team performs. If the team performs well, then I’ve done my job.”

Giteau’s main concern seems to be fitness, and there are question marks on whether he will complete the game, with a first half appearance the only certainty at this stage.