Stephen Larkham has been axed as Wallabies assistant coach and appointed national high-performance coach adviser.

In a statement, Larkham said he and Cheika could not agree on key points of attacking strategy and game philosophy.

‘Ultimately Michael is responsible for the performance of the team. We have differences in attacking strategy and overall game philosophy. We couldn’t agree on these key points, and it is in the best interest of the team that they receive clear and consistent messages from their coaches.

‘I am obviously disappointed with this outcome, as I had chosen to pursue the experience of taking the Wallabies through to the World Cup. However I am pleased to be able to continue coaching and contributing to Australian rugby in this new role.’

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