Will Skelton praises coach Michael Cheika as he signs to stay in Australia

Will Skelton credited Wallabies coach Michael Cheika with unlocking his potential after signing up to stay in Australian rugby until the end of 2017.

The 23-year-old, one of Australia's most promising young tight five players, is expected to be included in the match-day squad for Saturday's Rugby Championship opener against South Africa at Lang Park in Brisbane.

Cheika gave the New Zealand-born lock, who stands 2.04m tall and weighs in at 140kgs, his break at the New South Wales Waratahs and Skelton played a big role in their 2014 Super Rugby triumph.

"He's unlocked the drive that I had as a kid but really it has come out in the last couple of years," Skelton said of Cheika in Brisbane on Wednesday.

"He's a great coach and he really gets the best out of me. He's a strength-driven coach and he backs my ability and I'll repay that faith when I get on the field."

Skelton, who has played all but one of his eight Tests off the bench, is a major threat with ball in hand, has surprisingly soft hands in the pass and is an excellent defender of the rolling maul.

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He has worked hard on his scrummaging and conditioning this year but is still too heavy to lift to any great effect at the lineout, which means at least one of the loose forwards picked alongside him has to have that option to his game.

"I still feel I have a lot of improvement left in my game," he added.

"You need to have high standards for yourself and I've been working extremely hard throughout the year to work on all areas of my game to make me a complete 80 minute player."

Skelton is the latest Australia player to opt to continue their playing career at home following the World Cup, ignoring the lure from cash-rich overseas clubs. 

Lucrative overseas contracts have already attracted a host of players such as Adam Ashley-Cooper, former Wallaby skipper James Horwill, Will Genia and Sekope Kepu to agree to leave Australia after the autumn World Cup in England.

Australia players based abroad are unable to represent their country, although the eligibility rules were relaxed earlier this year to allow senior players at overseas clubs to continue playing for the Wallabies.