Week 4 of the Rugby Championship continued with the first ever match at the new Allianz Stadium in Sydney as Australia hosted South Africa. The World Champions, coming in on a shock 2-game losing streak, made a number of changes to their squad for this match and were immediately on the front foot, putting heavy pressure on in defence and looking dangerous in attack. And so it was no surprise to see the Springboks open the scoring, after phases of pressure in the 22 from the forwards drew the defence in tight, leaving space for Eben Etzebeth to spin in contact and offload to Damian de Allende to go over beneath the posts, while Matt Philip was also sent to the bin for not retreating 10m at a penalty in the build-up. The South African dominance continued as the half went on, but wet conditions led to a series of handling errors that brought their chances to an end, while Australia were forced into a reshuffle of their back line as Hunter Paisami went off just before the half hour with a head injury, Andrew Kellaway coming on at 13 while Len Ikitau moved to 12. The Wallabies grew into the game though and Noah Lolesio put them on the scoreboard with 8 minutes left of the half with his first kick at goal. However the Springboks got the last laugh before the break as Canan Moodie outjumped Marika Koroibete to beat him to Jaden Hendrikse’s box kick before running in uncontested to score on his Test debut and give the Springboks a 3-12 lead at the break.
The second half began much like the first, with incredible pressure from the Springboks leading to an early try as Willie le Roux sent Franco Mostert over in the corner, while the Wallabies were dealt a blow as replacement Taniela Tupou suffered an injury when warming up and Noah Lolesio left the pitch, forcing another reshuffle that saw replacement scrum half Jake Gordon come on to play on the wing. The Wallabies put together a patch of dominance which ended as Allan Ala’alatoa was penalised for a clean-out direct to the head of Damian de Allende, and the South Africans put the pressure straight back on, winning a series of penalties that saw de Allende held up over the line, but with 10 minutes remaining, the ball was spread wide for Willie le Roux to send Makazole Mapimpi in the corner for a try, with the wing also being sent to the bin after his reaction sparked a coming together between both teams. With a man advantage, Australia went over for a consolation try with just minutes left, while le Roux was sent to the bin for a deliberate knock-on in the build-up, but there was no further time for the Wallabies to fight back and the game ended in an 8-24 victory for the World Champions.
The right trio?
Have Australia got the right trio in the back row? They look like they had found a reliable trio in Rob Leota, Michael Hooper and Rob Valentini, but with Hooper pulling out, and the decision to bring in Jed Holloway in place of Leota, that balance is having to be found all over again.
McReight is certainly doing his best to replace Hooper, but those are big boots to fill for a player so inexperienced at this level, and while Holloway is surely doing plenty of work that goes unseen, he des not appear to be getting as involved as Leota used to.
For me, McReight needs to stay in as a specialist 7, but I would argue that Holloway be replaced, either by Leota or my preferred choice Pete Samu: Capable of playing across the back row, he brings power, dynamism and is also good for a couple of turnovers per game. Adding him gives the Wallabies another genuine weapon in attack, while the Wallabies could also draw up a couple of plays off scrums that see Samu and Valentini swap positions.
Dominant
After 2 losses in a row, South Africa needed a reaction. Well the certainly got one in this match. Right from the kickoff, this looked like a team that were looking to ensure that they not only won, but dominated their opposition.
Siya Kolisi played like a man possessed, absolutely dominating the breakdown, while usual replacements Malcolm Marx and Steven Kitshoff were running hard with ball in hand and doing everything they could to disrupt the Australian breakdown. Jasper Wiese carried hard and in my view should now be the first choice number 8 , likewise Hendrikse at 9 who remains a handful and kicks so effectively. De Allende varied his play at 12—though I would argue he still put in too many questionable kicks—while Willie le Roux did his usual job of calming things down and keeping things in order in the back line. And lets also take a moment to mention Canan Moodie, who made his debut and arguably outplayed one of Australia’s most consistently dangerous players in Marika Koroibete!
They put the pressure on the Wallabies and never really let off, never giving them a chance to properly get their own attacking play going , while still also using the kicking game to keep them in their own half. Was it a perfect performance? No, but it’s a timely reminder that playing with desire, aggression and intensity—as long as it’s correctly channeled—is important if you want to win in Test rugby.
Eyes on the Ball 