Skelton is a famously large human — listed at 203cm and 135kg — but it is not until you are in his vicinity that you appreciate just how large.
The experienced lock and his Wallabies team-mates plan to do everything possible to rebound from the weekend’s 38-7 mauling at the hands of the All Blacks in Melbourne when they play the second Bledisloe Cup test at Forsyth Barr Stadium on Saturday.
"It’s massive. For us, we’re really focusing on our performance," Skelton said at the team hotel yesterday.
"We thought we had a great start in Melbourne and it’s about prolonging that and finishing matches and having an 80-minute performance."
It has been a rugged start to the year for the Wallabies.
They finished bottom of the Rugby Championship with three losses, two of them heavy, and they are also having their depth tested thanks to a flurry of injuries to key men.
Skelton, however, insisted morale was not an issue for Eddie Jones’ men.
"The belief in the group has always been there, and it always will be.
"The scorelines haven’t gone our way but we’re still building as a team. We’re improving every week, and that’s an internal thing. We’re still searching for that performance we can be proud of.
"We’re building on our connections. New coach, lot of new faces, and we’re trying to get tighter as a squad."
The Wallabies are unusually spending the whole week in Dunedin, while the All Blacks do not arrive until Friday.
Skelton, 31, has played Super Rugby at the covered stadium but is eagerly awaiting his first test there in front of a vocal crowd.
"We want to play with the ball and we just want to get over the gainline. That’s the big thing for us, so having a dry ball and an enclosed arena is going to be nice.
"The atmosphere is amazing. As soon as we found out we were playing down here, we were excited about that."
Skelton has been based in the northern hemisphere for nearly seven years, during which time he has won four European titles, two each with Saracens and new French powerhouse La Rochelle.
He is looking forward to saying bonjour to Sam Whitelock when the All Blacks great heads to France next season.
"Mate, he’s a legend, isn’t he? He’s paved the way for locks — probably one of the best in the past two decades.
"When I was at school, I was watching him play and he was carving up.
"I think he’s had a great career in that All Black jersey. It will be good to play him in France next year. It’s a long grind over there, so he’ll have to get used to that.
"He can adapt anywhere. He played good footy in Japan. I think he’ll look to enjoy the French lifestyle and hopefully we can butt heads together."
The Wallabies are hobbling along without injured captain Michael Hooper and key prop Allan Alaalatoa, who rupture his Achilles against the All Blacks in Melbourne.
Rookie flanker Tom Hooper said the team was determined to push on despite the blows that kept coming.
"Allan is a massive loss. You probably saw the effect that he had on the whole team at the weekend, losing such a key individual, and all our thoughts and prayers are with him.
"We’ve still got a really strong leadership group and guys supporting them. It’s a good spot to be in as a young bloke.
"We just have to build a habit of winning now."
Australians do not usually lack confidence and Hooper, 22, is fizzing about the Wallabies’ chances this weekend.
"We’ve got that belief every week. We saw really good glimpses, especially in that first 20, against the All Blacks.
"We’re playing footy, and when we’ve got the ball in our hands, we look all right. We’ve just got to make sure we nullify the All Blacks machine."
