Australia lock James Horwill is not getting carried away by suggestions a fragile New Zealand lineout is ripe for the taking in their upcoming Tri-Nations clash in Wellington.

The 24-year-old is expecting a much-improved effort from Australia's trans-Tasman foes in the dead-rubber tie at Westpac Stadium this weekend.

"When you see a team perform poorly one week, the next week they are usually much better and I expect that to be the case this weekend," said the second-rower.

"They have got a lot of good jumpers there so it will be tough for us.

"We need to make sure that we back our drills and stick to our guns. Hopefully if we do that we can get some good clean ball for our backs."

Horwill also conceded the Wallabies' lineout had struggled to impose itself against the dominant Springboks.

"They are a very good lineout, especially defensively," he admitted.

"Victor (Matfield), Bakkies (Botha), Juan Smith and Pierre Spies work very well together as a group and they are a tough prospect.

"We know how they (New Zealand) feel a little bit after our performance in Newlands wasn't up to scratch."