Australia scrum-half Will Genia has insisted the Wallabies will treat their October 30 Test against New Zealand the same as any other game.
Genia is the current incumbent of the gold and green No9 shirt and is in line to battle it out with Luke Burgess to take on the Lions on the 2013 tour.
But long before that, Australia take on the All Blacks in Hong Kong in the final Bledisloe Cup encounter of the year.
The match has been seen by many as a mere warm-up ahead of the Wallabies' European tour and the 2011 World Cup, but the live-wire scrum-half has denied that is the case and claimed the game will be treated exactly the same as any other game against the All Blacks.
"No way, it's another Test match," said Genia.
"You never take them lightly. It's not a stepping stone to another Test match or another tour, it's what we're preparing for.
"You hear Robbie (Deans) and the coaches constantly saying this is New Zealand – there's been no mention of England or Wales or any other team.
"New Zealand is the first game and that's what we're focusing on."
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Australia have a poor recent record against New Zealand
Despite any hopes of winning the coveted Bledisloe Cup vanishing when the Wallabies lost 23-22 to the All Blacks in Sydney, Genia says the squad is fresh and ready to improve on their Tri Nations showing.
"It feels like a new group that's gathered together," added Genia.
"We're trying to build on what we've achieved in the Tri Nations and I'm really excited going forward.
"As a group we've got an idea of what we're going to fix up on and … we're definitely attending to those things in our training sessions.
"You take three weeks off, you reflect back on the tournament itself and you look at things you can improve on. It's easier when you've taken a step back as opposed to being in the heat of the moment trying to make improvements and corrections."
Referring to the last Test in Sydney, Genia added: "For the first time for a long time we felt like we were on top of them in the game and it was just unfortunate the way they hung in there and through game smarts were able to come away with the win.
"We want to become a team that wins, but is consistent."
The Wallabies kick-off their European Tour against Wales at the Millennium Stadium on November 6 and then take on Leicester Tigers, England and Italy before rounding off their visit on November 27 with a visit to Paris to take on current Six Nations champions France.
