In what will be his Test debut for Italy, Gower will square off against the brilliant Matt Giteau in what will be the most anticipated clash at Canberra Stadium.

After being named in the No10 jersey yesterday, the former Penrith Panthers skipper Gower admitted he was still learning his new role, as well as a new language.

He said he was prepared to be a scapegoat if he bombed out in just his fifth match as a flyhalf.

''I suppose you can look at it both ways it can be daunting but it's a great challenge,'' Gower said.

''So I'm going to go in there positive. It's a great yardstick to come up against and obviously I'll hear the brunt of it at the end of the game if I'm no good.''

The lesson from last weekend's 55-7 romp against the Barbarians is that the Wallabies don't respect reputations formed in the 13-a-side code.

They rushed and flattened Williams several times when he had the ball in hand.

But it was in defence he was most obviously exposed, most notably when Giteau charged through a gaping hole left by a drifting Williams to score his team's third try.

In Gower's favour is that he has an extra year of experience in the game compared to Williams, even if most of his rugby has been played as an inside centre.

Giteau, who has the mantle as the game's top flyhalf for at least as long as All Blacks rival Dan Carter remains injured, said he wouldn't be taking his Test rookie opponent lightly.

He said he had admired Gower during his league career and had closely studied his rugby performances with French club Bayonne.

''Defensively he's solid and he'll bring something different to the Italians in attack,'' Giteau said.

''[Flyhalf] is similar in a way to playing halfback in league. Getting that first pass off and being able to ballplay from there.''

Gower, 31, is no stranger to pressure, having had a league career spanning 238 NRL matches, seven State of Origin appearances for NSW and 18 Tests with the Kangaroos.