The Wallabies have opened the Joe Schmidt era with a hard-fought 25-16 victory over Wales in Sydney. The match took place ten months after a crushing 40-6 defeat to the Welsh that knocked Australia out of the Rugby World Cup. This win serves as a small measure of revenge for the Wallabies.
Key contributions came from powerhouse prop Taniela Tupou and winger Filipo Daugunu, both of whom crossed the try line. Jake Gordon, who was recalled to the test arena after missing Eddie Jones’ World Cup squad, delivered a standout man-of-the-match performance.
Only seven Wallabies from the previous record-breaking loss to Wales were retained as Schmidt introduced a new-look team for his first test as coach. The fresh lineup produced a gritty, albeit unspectacular, effort to hand Wales their eighth consecutive defeat in a challenging year.
Tom Lynagh, the 21-year-old son of 1991 World Cup-winning legend Michael Lynagh, made his debut off the bench and helped guide the Wallabies to victory after joining the match with 14 minutes left.
Despite the victory, the game was far from a classic. The ninth-ranked Australians managed to outlast the 10th-ranked Welsh in a bruising, error-filled contest.
“It was stressful there today,” remarked Schmidt, praising his team for their determination. “We stuck at it. A win is really important and it always is because that’s what you get judged on externally. But internally, just some of the moments that we did really well to earn the win, that’s what will be the focus for us this week building into the next game in Melbourne.”
Schmidt inherited one of the most ill-disciplined sides in world rugby, and early on, repeat offender James Slipper conceded a penalty, allowing Welsh flyhalf Ben Thomas to score the opening points with a successful kick.
Recalled five-eighth Noah Lolesio, given the responsibilities of playmaking and goalkicking under Schmidt, swiftly replied with two penalties to put the Wallabies ahead at 6-3. The lead extended to 13-3 when Tupou finished off a series of pick-and-goes for Australia’s first try.
French referee Pierre Brousset kept his whistle busy, eventually sending Wales prop Gareth Thomas to the sin bin for repeated infringements. The Wallabies were also reduced to 14 men when flanker Fraser McReight was yellow-carded for trying to stop a Welsh driving maul. This resulted in a penalty try, closing the gap to 13-10 at halftime, despite Australia dominating possession and territory.
The scores were tied at 13-13 early in the second half when Daugunu broke through the defense, sprinting 30 meters to score in the right-hand corner. Tension rose when Welsh replacement James Botham appeared to score from a maul, only for the television match official to disallow the try due to obstruction.
Lolesio missed a scoring opportunity with a needless kick when the Wallabies had an overlap five meters from the line. Up 18-16, Schmidt then brought on Lynagh for Lolesio. Lynagh became the 12th Australian to follow his father into test rugby and played a key role in finishing the match. He fielded a long kick and delivered early ball to Wright, who then raced through the defense to score.
This victory marked an end to a poor run for the Wallabies in Sydney, where they had won only one of their previous 12 tests in the NSW capital.