Joe Schmidt is braced for a "hell of a Test" and is hopeful that Ireland have enough fuel in the tank to finish a successful season on a high.
The Six Nations champions take on Australia in a series-deciding clash in Sydney on Saturday and must do without Garry Ringrose, Dan Leavy and Andrew Conway, who all miss out through injury.
The Wallabies are missing playmaker Will Genia, who broke his arm in last Saturday’s game, which Ireland won 26-21.
"I think it’s going to be an interesting Test, I think it’s going to be a hell of a Test," the head coach told RTÉ Sport.
"You can expect them to ramp up their defensive pressure.
"I think they’ll be a little bit frustrated that they didn’t get us under quite as much pressure as they did in the first week.
"They may try to play a little bit more at us."
The injury to Leavy has opened up a spot in the backrow and a reshuffle sees Jack Conan start with CJ Stander and captain Peter O’Mahony rotating.
"CJ has played a lot at 6 for us," said Schmidt, "that’s not a big change.
"Pete being at 7, that will only change the scrum for Pete, he’ll still be a key lineout player for us because he’s a fantastic athlete in the lineout.
"With Dan Leavy injured and Jordi Murphy having big minutes on tour and Pete has led the team really well, as has Johnny [Sexton].
"We wanted to keep that shared responsibility for those two guys and we CJ there that offers a bit of confidence to Jack Conan that he’s just got to play his game.
"He’s got two experienced guys beside him and Conor just behind him guiding him off the base of the scrum and around the pitch."
Here’s the Ireland team to play Australia in the final test. #TeamOfUs #AUSvIRL pic.twitter.com/7pBBxi8Cg6
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) June 21, 2018
The New Zealander added that while the 1-1 scoreline may be good for fans, it’s not what he would have chosen.
"Nicely balanced for me is 2-0 to us," he said.
"It’s probably nicely balanced for the neutral spectator and for Australian Rugby. It’s generating interest; it’s exactly what Australian Rugby needs.
"A lot has been made of the world rankings, it’s a heavyweight contest, two versus three.
"When you haven’t lost in over a year you kind of forget just how frustrating it all feels after.
"Hopefully we can retain some of that animosity [from losing the first Test] and bring it to what is going to be a massive physical challenge.
"Conor [Murray] has spoken about how players are managed in Ireland and how that allows them to maintain a degree of fuel in the tank through to the end of the season.
"I’m hoping that they are not looking too much towards the end of the season because we’ve only got a couple of 40-minute periods to make the very best of this season because it could be a little bit special for us if we can get the result."
Ireland Down Under: Jordan Larmour on #AUSvIRL and his experience on tour so far. #TeamOfUs pic.twitter.com/PJnIMiZMcU
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) June 21, 2018
#BREAKING l #Wallabies team to face @IrishRugby in the decider of the Mitsubishi Estate Ireland Series at @AllianzStadium.
— Qantas Wallabies (@qantaswallabies) June 21, 2018
TEAM: https://t.co/vfYr5oUlD1#AUSvIRL #GoldBlooded pic.twitter.com/wv5e9RO3Nf
Follow Australia v Ireland on our live blog on RTÉ Sport Online and the RTÉ News Now app and listen to live commentary on 2fm from 10.45am (11am kick-off).
