The Les Kiss era is officially under way for the Wallabies, with Australia's rugby union squad gathering in Sydney on Tuesday for the first camp under their new head coach — just 430 days out from their Rugby World Cup opener in Perth. Veteran prop Allan Alaalatoa says that timetable is more than sufficient for Kiss to put his stamp on the side and get it firing ahead of the tournament.

The transition from outgoing coach Joe Schmidt was described as clunky, but the squad wasted no time settling in, beginning with leadership and team meetings before a defensive walk-through session at Cranbrook school in Sydney's eastern suburbs. The first full training session under Kiss is set for Wednesday at North Sydney Oval — a ground with personal significance for the new coach, who played around 100 games there as a winger for the North Sydney Bears in his rugby league career.

Kiss hints at a more expansive Wallabies game

While Rugby Australia has emphasised stylistic continuity between Kiss and his former Ireland mentor Schmidt, Kiss himself has signalled he intends to bring his own flavour to the role. His most pointed remarks have centred on attack, where Schmidt's philosophy has long been regarded as conservative and highly structured.

"My points of difference will be how I see the game in attack," Kiss said publicly over the weekend. "I work off a strong principle of going forward but I do like a lot more width in the game. And I am probably more of a collaborative type of coach, and making sure every coach has a part to play."

His track record at the Queensland Reds supports that vision. Under Kiss, the Reds developed into one of Super Rugby Pacific's most adventurous sides, consistently ranking among the competition's leaders for tries scored and offloads. Forwards were deployed in wide channels and the team built a clear identity around counter-attacking rugby.

"Looking at the Reds' attack, they definitely played a more expansive type of game of footy, which worked for them at Super Rugby," Alaalatoa said. "We'll just see if that's something that he wants to bring in."

Defence overhaul could be the bigger shift

Equally significant is the appointment of new defence coach Scott McLeod, who replaced long-serving Laurie Fisher in the role. McLeod brings considerable pedigree — he spent five years as a defence assistant with the All Blacks and was part of the New Zealand coaching staff that reached the 2023 Rugby World Cup final.

It was telling that the first on-field session of the Kiss era was largely handed to McLeod to run, and those close to the program suggest the most meaningful changes to the Wallabies' game will come in how they defend rather than how they attack. Alaalatoa confirmed that Kiss had not yet gone into specific detail about the changes planned, but acknowledged that incremental shifts were coming.

"There's been a strong foundation that's been built over the course of two years under Joe, and an understanding there's some really good parts of [our] game we want to continue to grow, and we don't want to remove," Alaalatoa said. "But there are also little shifts that he wants to add, which he will do over time."

What to expect in the lead-up to the World Cup

The immediate focus for Kiss and his squad is a two-Test series against Japan next month, which will serve as the first real opportunity to see his ideas take shape on the field. With the World Cup campaign beginning in Perth, the pressure to build momentum quickly is real — but Alaalatoa, for one, is confident the new coach has the energy and expertise to deliver.

"He's very excited, and he's very passionate about the Wallabies and about us doing well," the veteran prop said. "I'm just keen to learn more about him, and to understand why he does what he does. I've heard a lot of great things from the boys who have been coached under him."

After years of structured, low-risk rugby under Schmidt, the blend of improved fundamentals and a more expansive attacking intent under Kiss could prove a timely evolution — provided the pieces fall into place before rugby's biggest stage arrives.