Match Report: Wallabies 21 v 43 All Blacks

Brutal All Blacks Bury Bumbling WallaBies as Beauden Bags a Bledisloe Brace

Over 80,000 packed Accor Stadium for the finale of a first-of-its-kind quadruple-header, with the Cup already lost after last week’s 50-19 shellacking at Eden Park. That result kept the Bledisloe across the ditch for a 23rd straight year. Les Kiss walked into this series unbeaten as coach, with five wins and a draw from six Tests. He walks out with a record 13th straight loss to New Zealand and what he called a brutal reality check. Twisting the knife, the opposition coach was Dave Rennie, sacked by Rugby Australia four years ago. Rennie’s All Blacks were missing Jordie Barrett (calf), Ardie Savea, Richie Mo’unga and Ruben Love, then lost Quinn Tupaea to concussion early.

None of it mattered.

First Half

For ten minutes the Wallabies were the better side. Max Jorgensen sliced through three times in the opening quarter-hour, but Beauden Barrett snuffed out the first break one-on-one. On another, Jorgo backed himself rather than feed an unmarked Tom Wright. Then the game turned on him. In the 11th minute he rushed out of the line chasing an intercept that never came, and Josh Moorby dummied Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and slipped Rob Valetini to score.

What followed was a point-a-minute blitz. Barrett crashed over Declan Meredith at 16 after Damian McKenzie’s interlink sent Peter Lakai through. At 20, Cam Roigard’s double pump let Moorby punch through and offload in the lead-up, and Lakai powered over from close range to make it 17-0. At 25, Fabian Holland pinched Josh Nasser’s lineout, the hooker’s only miss of the night (albeit the Wallabies competed against the throw infrequently), and Rieko Ioane scored in his favourite corner.

Jeremy Williams finished off a Meredith link at 28. Two minutes later he was binned for an offence near his own line, a call plenty of Wallabies fans felt deserved a look from the TMO. The All Blacks barely scrummed in the first half, yet a five-metre scrum at 31 minutes was all Wallace Sititi needed, breaking off the back and beating Ryan Lonergan comfortably. With Australia kicking ball away aimlessly and unable to contain the offloads, the climax was cruel. On the stroke of half-time Barrett picked off Jorgensen’s pass and outran Wright: 36-7.

Second Half

Moorby dummied Jorgensen for a walk-in inside a minute of the restart, and at 43-7 a record trans-Tasman hiding loomed. Then the hosts found some go-forward. Plenty of supporters put that down to finally holding on to the ball instead of kicking it away. Angus Bell replaced Aidan Ross at the break, and Wright crossed at 53. Replacement Filipo Daugunu followed at 65, with Meredith converting. Meredith was also denied a try of his own at one stage by a last-ditch Barrett tackle that jolted the ball loose. He limped off around 70, handing Harry McLaughlin-Phillips his debut as Wallaby No. 1001.

Frizell’s injury left New Zealand short, and Chay Fihaki’s yellow at 75 for a tackle on Suaalii made it worse. They never scored after the 43rd minute. Australia had 68 per cent of the ball in the final ten and still came up empty. Winning the second half 14-7 is a consolation, not a result.

The Individuals

• Peter Lakai: Best on ground. He made a match-high 18 carries and 15 tackles, won an early turnover in his own 22, made multiple first-half line breaks and scored a try. No Ardie, no problem.
• Beauden Barrett: Reports of his decline were greatly exaggerated. Two tries, 10 points, three line breaks, a turnover won and the try-saver on Meredith. Vintage Beaudy.
• Fabian Holland: A match-high 24 tackles, two dominant hits and the lineout steal that became a try. Wallaby carriers bounced off him all night.
• Damian McKenzie: He kicked all four of New Zealand’s conversions from seven attempts. His real damage came out the back of the pods, where he was involved in around half a dozen line breaks.
• Declan Meredith: Australia’s best in just his fourth Test start at No. 10. He set up a try, came close to scoring one and showed real ambition. Three turnovers lost and a shaky boot keep the jury out.
• Max Jorgensen: Seven line breaks and five turnovers lost, both the most on the field. He also threw the pass Barrett picked off to seal the half. Brilliant and costly in equal measure.

Where It Was Won

1. Ball security, not ball movement. Australia beat New Zealand on almost every measure of going forward:

• Carries: 192 to 162
• Post-contact metres: 182 to 113
• Line breaks: 17 to 16

Yet they lost 19 turnovers to 10. From eight 22 entries they averaged 2.6 points, while New Zealand averaged 4.8 from nine. They need to find the killer edge.

2. Set-piece sucker punches. The Wallabies won 90 per cent of their lineouts, but the one they lost became Ioane’s try. The All Blacks barely scrummed in the first half, yet a five-metre scrum at 31 minutes was all Sititi needed. Two set pieces, 12 points.

3. A wall that wouldn’t budge. Australia owned 54 per cent of possession and 56 per cent of territory. The All Blacks made 196 tackles to 159, with Holland and Scott Barrett making 46 between them. At the other end, Australia conceded nine tries and 55 points in 55 minutes of play across the two Tests. That number should alarm Kiss and defence coach Scott McLeod.

What Next?

Kiss framed the gap as sixth in the world against second, and his top-four ambition now rides on a Nations Championship spring tour where every Test counts. Australia’s fixtures:

• England at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham: Monday 9 November, 1:10am AEST
• Scotland at Scottish Gas Murrayfield: Monday 16 November, 1:10am AEST
• Wales at the Principality Stadium: Sunday 22 November, 6:10am AEST

Len Ikitau’s injury and Hunter Paisami’s suspension leave the midfield threadbare, and Suaalii’s defence is under the microscope. Supporters are also weary of hearing what lessons another New Zealand loss offers.

The All Blacks play every tour Test at 12:10am AEST:

• Scotland at Murrayfield: Sunday 8 November
• Wales in Cardiff: Sunday 15 November
• England at Twickenham: Sunday 22 November

They want Jordie, Savea and Tupaea back, and a bench that adds more than it did during Sydney’s scoreless final 37 minutes.

Scorers

Wallabies 21

• Tries: Jeremy Williams (28 min), Tom Wright (53 min), Filipo Daugunu (65 min)
• Conversions: Ryan Lonergan (29 min, 54 min), Declan Meredith (66 min)
• Penalties: Nil
• Yellow Card: Jeremy Williams (30 min)

All Blacks 43

• Tries: Josh Moorby (11 min, 42 min), Beauden Barrett (16 min, 40 min), Peter Lakai (20 min), Rieko Ioane (25 min), Wallace Sititi (31 min)
• Conversions: Damian McKenzie (21 min, 32 min, 41 min, 43 min)
• Penalties: Nil
• Yellow Card: Chay Fihaki (75 min)