Wallaby great Nick Farr-Jones on Monday urged selectors to keep faith with rookie Wallaby scrumhalf Luke Burgess after a shaky performance against world champions South Africa last weekend.

Australia chalked up their fourth straight victory under new coach Robbie Deans with a disciplined 16-9 win over the Springboks in their Tri-Nations opener in Perth on Saturday.

But Burgess, playing in only his fourth international since replacing the retired George Gregan, was erratic with his passes.

Burgess was the first to admit that his ball clearance needed to improve ahead of Saturday's Tri-Nations encounter with New Zealand in Sydney.

Farr-Jones, Australia’s first World Cup winning captain who was inducted into the Wallabies Hall of Fame on Monday, offered to help Burgess ahead of the showdown with the All Blacks.

"I'd like to see him be given every chance this year to prove himself and I think we've got to be patient," Farr-Jones told reporters on Monday.

"Yeah, he's made a couple of errors. Some of those errors have been partly because of not great cleaning out at the ruck at the breakdown.

"But the positive thing is that he doesn't shirk. He (acknowledges) that he can do better and he's prepared to put his hand up.

"I think he'll turn into one of our fine scrumhalves. He's got the makings of a terrific halfback and hopefully I'll get a chance to help him minimise some of those errors.

"We might get together this week and I'd like to sit down and have a good look at his technique. I'd like to have a good chat to him as well about judgment and decision making and hopefully we'll get that opportunity."

Farr-Jones played 63 Tests, 36 as captain, and he was part of Australia's 1984 Grand Slam team of the British Isles, the 1986 Bledisloe Cup winning side in New Zealand and was Australia's first World Cup winning captain in 1991.

AFP