So who's in? 

Well, coach Robbie Deans is, for another two years having signed again in a great show of faith from the Australian Rugby Union this week. 

His first major assignment since re-signing is to name his 30-man World Cup squad on Thursday. With only a 56 percent winning rate at the helm of a team consistently ranked in the top three in the world, Deans is probably lucky he doesn't have to make hard decisions about himself based on statistics alone. 

Instead he will cull several excellent players from a squad that has the potential to win it all and, to Deans' credit, has been largely rebuilt during his two plus seasons in charge.  There will be personal heartbreak for the discarded, but the reality is the key decisions only come down to a couple of spots. 

A utility back slot is the most contentious - selectors will likely decide to either kickstart Berrick Barnes injury-hampered career or keep Matt Giteau's international status on life support for a few months longer. 

Giteau has been the subject of much spectator angst for a few seasons. Without pretending to know the intricacies of his relationship with Deans, it's pretty clear they have issues. 

He's also sometimes been painted as a divisive influence within squads he's played with. Who knows whether that's true, but the fact is, the Brumbies were downright awful this year and the Wallabies struggled for an edge when he was running the team immediately before the rise of Quade Cooper. 

His last match for Australia, the loss to Samoa, was a one-game snapshot of that recent record. The Wallabies did not spark and at times looked Brumbie-like in their lack of focus. 

But was it Giteau's fault? 

Generally his work over the last few seasons has been solid (for the Wallabies) to excellent (for the otherwise dreadful Brumbies). 

I'm not unaware of his apparent inability to do what he regularly did early in his Test career, by making something happen out of nothing - actually I suspect that's his biggest issue, the perception he should be playing the way he used to. 

Fact is, he a more rounded player than he used to be, and this, oddly, can sometimes be to a player's detriment particularly when those around him aren't performing well enough to take advantage of those expanded talents. 

Don't get me wrong, Giteau has dug his own grave to an extent, but remember he played with a pretty ordinary Western Force side under a coach who seemed to battle rather than inspire and followed it up with the disastrous stint with a clearly fractured Brumbies club. 

At the same time, he was battling a reputation as being a mouthy mongrel who didn't pay heed to Deans. And then along comes smarty pants Cooper, pulling focus from every decent 10 in the country. 

Chances are Giteau won't get a gig in the WC. He'll head off to play in the Top 14 in France knowing his Test career is probably over. 

There will be a lot of people saying it's for the best: and I don't necessarily think the Wallabies will lose a lot with Barnes (unless he starts kicking as a first instinct again). But it's regrettable - no, make that mildly tragic - that the Wallabies, for whatever reason, feel they can't accommodate one of the most talented and assertive players of the last 10 years who is not beyond his best. 

No doubt, the ball-playing stocks are sufficiently deep that a number of excellent players will miss out and the backline will still shape up well against any opponent. 

The forwards? Er, not so much. Yet there has been terrific improvement (just in time). I don't think there's any doubt the four locks should be Nathan Sharpe, Dan Vickerman, James Horwill and Rob Simmons, with Horwill and Sharpe the first choice starters. 

The flankers pick themselves - it's clear Rocky Elsom is still short of a run but you don't drop your captain if you can help it. He's one game away from being murderously good. 

The big one is No.8. They say Wycliff Palu is still "iffy". His injury-ravaged last two seasons has lost him fans and believers. It's also cost their Australians their best close to breakdown ball carrier. 

Simply, they need him, otherwise they have no-one to consistently get over the advantage around the ruck: the single most obvious flaw in their game. Scott Higginbotham and Radike Samo look good, certainly better options than the injured Richard Brown and makeshift No 8 Ben McCalman, but they ain't Palu. 

Put him on the plane Robbie, even if he's still only on one leg. Maybe Matt Giteau could carry his luggage.