Key events
A decent half without too much world class quality. Some moments for both coaches to focus on.
Wales’ defence has impressed. Australia’s scrum has clicked. But a lack of contunuioty elsewhere has rendered this a rather scrappy affair.
Still, thanks toa yellow card apiece and a try for Australia and a penalty try for Wales has kept things interesting.
Just about even with Australia rightly shading it on the scoreboard.
Half-time: Australia 13-10 Wales
That’ll be that. Wainwright picks up at the back of the scrum and carries. It’s sharp work from the Welsh No 8 after his pack has struggled at scrum time.
The ball is soon out of play and the whistle sounds for the break.
40 min: Australia can’t punch a hole through the Welsh line from the line-out. Paisami and Tupou try, but can’t find the gap. Salakaia-Loto knocks on in the face of quick line speed from Wales under the shade of their own poles. Wales’ defence has been impressive.
38 min: Australia kick after going nowhere with their carries. Wales return the favour and Tom Wright does well to hold on under pressure. Gordan then hoists a high kick and Bevan fumbles. It’s not complicated, but if you’re the team that knocks on in the game of kick tennis you’re handing the opposition a real opportunity. Wales then give away a penalty and Lolesio punts to the corner. Big moment at the end of the first half.
36 min: Dyer fields a tricky kick near the touchline and he has no choice but to carry the ball out. Australian line-out near half-way.
35 min: Daugunu, on the chase for a high kick, takes out a Hathaway in the air. Solid work from the young Welsh winger. Silly from Australia there. Every time they reestablish a foothold they cough up possession or a penalty.
33 min: Scrum penalty for Australia. Another big shove from Tupou. That’s one way to find an exit strategy.
32 min: Wales go short in the line with Jenkins fielding, but rather than maul they set a quick move round the back. There’s a knock-on in contact with Salakaia-Loto getting the pats on the back for a big hit in the tight channel. Scrum on Australia’s 22 for the men in gold.
31 min: Williams fields a nothing kick from Paisami and lands a brilliant 50-22 in return. fantastic from the Welsh fullback. Poor from Australia. Momentum is starting to turn and Wales will have the throw just inside Australia’s 22.
30 min: Australia have the ball but they appear unsure what to do with it. More than twice someone collects when they weren’t expecting the pass. Eventually Tupou knocks on just as he takes the contact. Wales counter and grubber ahead, forcing Australia to throw to the line inside their own 22. Lolesio gets the ball inside his own goal area and rushes a kick almost to half-way. Great punt.
28 min: Lake fails to find his jumper and Australia pinch it. Then Wales kick it out on the full. A little scrappy. In truth most of this game has been scrappy. But good energy from both sets of players.
Line-out to Australia about 10 metres in Welsh territory.
27 minL The referees are having a look at something on the big screen. Ooooh. Paisami could be in trouble here for clearing out Plumtree at the knee. But the cards stay in the pocket. Play on.
27 min: Now another penalty for Wales on the deck. Australia going over the top. That’s four of the last five pens going against the home team so Ben Thomas can hoof the ball down field for a line-out.
26 min: What a turnaround from Wales. Three dominant mauls resulting in three penalties, one penalty try and a yellow card for Australia. Game on!
PENALTY TRY! Australia 13-10 Wales (24)
Dominance from Wales who set the maul from the line-out and powered to the line. It’s brought down illegally and they’re handed seven points.
There’s insult to injury as a Wallaby is yellow-carded. It’s McReight!
24 min: No try. Bevan knocked-on just before the line. But Wales have the penalty and kick to the corner again.
It’s all happening! Wales might be in here. It’s a mess at the back as a chipped kick from B Thomas causes havoc behind the Australian line. A Wallaby dives to ground the ball in his own goal area but misses it. Dyer then pounces and grounds. But there might be a Welsh knock-on before all that….
23 min: Wales get a penalty within range but Ben Thomas kicks to the corner.
Yellow card! Wales (Thomas, 21)
Gareth Thomas has been sin-binned. I must admit I didn’t see the offence. Perhaps slowing the ball down as Australia were building. Or maybe something said after the try was scored…
TRY! Australia 13-3 Wales (Tupou, 21)
No stopping him from there! It was trademark Australia and also a bit of Schmidt to be seen. Continuity and ball retention as they cycled through the phases. Off the back of the line-out they punched it close to the line. And with a metre to go, the big prop picked the ball up and burrowed over.
Lolesio converts to underline his team’s dominance.
20 min: Australia are within touching distance after a strong carry from the line-out. Inches now…
19 min: Liam Wright gets up at the front of the line-out and steals the Welsh throw. A rare opportunity to attack blown by Wales. Then Wales give away another penaltyas Lake didn’t release after thinking he’d nicked it on the ground. The Welsh skipper is told to speak to his mates as that’s a collective warning. Next one and someone could spend 10 minutes in the bin.
18 min: Penalty against Australia this time. Liam Wright’s sneaky pass back inside was a poor one and Plumtree nailed the unwilling ball carrier in Tom Wright. Wanwright also with a big hit in the move. Better from Wales on defence.
16 min: Wales are caught off-side again. That’s five penalties in quick succession. Hard to get on the front foot when you’re coughing up pens. Strong carry from Tupou and that has Welsh players backpeddling, which often leads to one straying off-side.
Penalty! Australia 6-3 Wales (Lolesio, 14)
I was mistaken earlier! Lolesio actually missed his second shot at goal. This time he does indeed slot it through the poles and now Australia take the lead.
14 min: Australia win a scrum penalty. Tupou with a mighty shove and excellent timing as the ball came in.
12 min: Australia are looking to exploit Wales’ rush defence, kicking over the top. Lolesio knocks-on thanks to Jenkins blitzing off the line. Scrum to Wales in their own half.
Penalty missed! Australia 3-3 Wales (Lolesio, 11)
Correction! He missed a goober!
10 min: Australia scream through a hole with Kellaway motoring up field. Neat interplay has fullback Tom Wright on the ball. Wales are off-side so there’s a penalty advantage. Lolesio’s cross-kick keeps the move going. Lovely energy from Australia. But the move fizzles out so Lolesio will line up another shot at goal.
9 min: Wales win a line-out on half-way. They’re moving up-field with some zip before Thomas hurls a spiralling pass straight out of touch. He needed Dyer flatter on the wing.
Penalty! Australia 3-3 Wales (Lolesio, 7)
He could have back-heeled that over. We’re all square.
6 min: Another penalty, right in front of the posts. Wright points to the poles. This will be an easy three points. Slick from Australia. Liam Williams did well on the rush defence but lost his feet and put his hands on the ground after making a tackle.
5 min: Australia back on the ball. Williams on debut punches up field. Lolesio searches for a 50-22 but Thomas and Dyer keep it in field. But Australia swarm over the ball which compels Reffell to fly in on the side and give away a penalty. Lolesio punts to the corner for a five metre line-out.
Penalty! Australia 0-3 Wales (Thomas, 4)
Lovely shot! And Thomas is on the board. No arms from Slipper as he dived in on Lake. And that’s a great start for Wales.
2 min: Wales get a line-out on half-way and Jenkins brings it down. Thomas finds debutant Hathaway and then Thomas kicks high and Lolesio fields. They come back for a penalty for Wales as there was a no-arm tackle. Thomas points to the poles from 45 metres out on the angle to the left.
There’s a great buzz in the stadium (at least from the pictures). The Aussies are up for this. No skin in the game but I hope their players can bring it. I hope Wales bring it.
Alrighty, Wales in red. Australia in gold. Away we go…..
Time for the anthems now…
Australia have not won at this ground IN A DECADE!
My goodness, why do they keep coming back?
Good to see Michael Hooper carry out the match ball before kick-off. He recently retired from the game.
A genuine superstar, one of the greatest ever Wallabies, both as a player and as a leader.
“We’ll find out about each other and ourselves.”
So says Joe Schmidt pitch side before the match. He’s only had four full days to work with this group. This is a fact finding mission as much as a must-win game for the new boss.
Over on the Sky feed, Sam Warburton, Dan Biggar and Jamie Roberts are on the sofa. How’s that for a trio!
None of them look overly confident, nor are they predicting a Welsh win with any great certainty.
But, as Roberts points out, Wales have beaten Australia in four of their previous five meetings. And all three agree that this is not the Wallabies of the previous generation. They’re there for the taking. No doubt about it.
You don’t have to score tries to win rugby matches, but they do help.
Wales have to find a spark here. I said earlier that I can’t see this turning into a freewheeling contest, but the Aussies will still have a go, and you’d think that they’ll eventually find a hole.
Wales, therefore, will have to right a particular wrong.
Wales had a period of 36 mins or more without scoring in 7 consecutive Tests
— Russ Petty (@rpetty80) July 5, 2024
Does history matter more than recent form?
It’s been 55 years since Wales beat the Wallabies on Australian soil. Back in 1969, a 19-16 win at the Sydney Cricket Ground was secured by a team stacked with legends. Barry John, Gareth Edwards, JPR Williams and John Dawes were on hand to clinch a famous triumph.
Since then, though, it’s been all green and gold with the Wallabies beating Wales at home in 11 consecutive matches.
However, Wales were magnificent the last time they met. At last year’s World Cup, a disjointed display by Eddie Jones’ team saw Wales pummel Australia 40-6 – their biggest every win in this fixture.
Lucky number seven for the Wallabies?
Seven players make their debut today and they’ll be skippered by Liam Wright, the Queensland Red who was “surprised” to be handed the leadership role.
Wright is Australia’s seventh captain in the past 12 months.
A new era dawns for Australian rugby
Joe Schmidt has 13 Tests between now and the start of the arrival British & Irish Lions but that hasn’t stopped him fielding a new-look outfit for his first assignment.
Seven debutants, a new skipper and fresh combinations all round, this is most certainly a whole new chapter for the Wallabies.
James Slipper remains, however, and will form the cornerstone of a formidable starting front row. Rob Valetini, in the running for most dynamic No. 8 in the world, adds heft in the loose.
I’m a big fan of Noah Lolesio, but can he get enough front foot ball to work with, and will a relatively unknown back-line add some spark on the outside?
We’ll find out soon enough.
50 up for Aaron Wainwright
Amidst a torrid spell, Wales’ rangy back-rower has shone. He was my pick for Warren Gatland’s player of the Six Nations and he brings up a half century of caps today.
Liam Williams provides 90 caps’ worth of expereince at full-back but otherwise it’s a green group with nine players possessing less than 10 Test to their name, including Gloucester’s Josh Hathaway who makes his debut on the wing.
🏴𝐗𝐕 𝐂𝐘𝐌𝐑𝐔🏴
👊A reminder of the 23 to face Australia this Saturday
🧢5️⃣0️⃣for Aaron Wainwright
🧢cap cyntaf i Josh Hathaway pic.twitter.com/K45BoH4Vxw
— Welsh Rugby Union 🏴 (@WelshRugbyUnion) July 4, 2024
Preamble
Daniel Gallan
If ever there was a game involving two teams desperate for a win, this is it.
On and off the pitch, both Australia and Wales have endured spells that, one could argue, represents the lowest points in their respective histories. Wales have lost seven in a row and have the memory of a historic wooden spoon in last year’s Six Nations fresh in the memory.
The Wallabies were unceremoniously dumped out of last year’s World Cup at the group stage and parted ways with Eddie Jones following his disastrous (and brief) tenure as head coach.
And that’s before we talk about young stars walking away from union, some joining the NFL, others switching to rugby league. Chuck in a host of off-field maladies, including a whole heap of missing cash and poor management of the game and what you have are two proud unions that could really do with some good news.
Will that render this a slugfest with both sets of inexperienced players spooked into a conservative game? Or will they throw caution to the wind, daring to become heroes when their nations need one?
I’m expecting the former but hoping for the latter. Either way, every touch of the ball, every tackle, every ruck will carry meaning. Sound the ‘delicately poised’ klaxon. We could have a classic on our hands.
My name is Daniel/Dan and I’m chuffed to be calling this for you. Drop me a mail if you fancy sharing a thought with the group.
Kick-off at 7:45pm in Sudney/ 10:45am BST.
Teams and updates to follow.