Wales stunned as Australia claim comeback win

Wales produced an excellent performance for 55 minutes only to be left shocked by a remarkable comeback from Australia, who secured a 39-34 triumph in Cardiff.

Wayne Pivac’s men played with tempo, intensity and physicality for the first hour, scoring four tries via Jac Morgan, who went over twice, Taulupe Faletau and Rio Dyer.

A weakened Wallabies side looked dead and buried but the visitors displayed tremendous spirit to respond.

Youngster Mark Nawaqanitawase was excellent throughout and began the fightback by touching down in the 58th minute before adding another 10 minutes later.

A penalty try reduced the arrears further before Lachlan Lonergan crossed the whitewash as Australia snatched an unlikely win.

It is a result which eases the pressure on Dave Rennie but asks further questions of Wales’ boss Pivac, who has overseen yet another defeat.

Whether Pivac remains in charge heading into this season’s Six Nations Championship now looks unlikely, with Wales’ woes continuing just 10 months before the World Cup in France.

Pivac handed a Test debut to Ospreys centre Joe Hawkins, while world record cap holder Alun Wyn Jones made his first Wales start since March.

But a late injury blow saw full-back Leigh Halfpenny ruled out after he suffered a back spasm during the warm-up, so wing Josh Adams was promoted off the bench and handed the number 15 shirt.

Wales made a poor start, with lock Adam Beard dropping the kick-off, Australia dominating an ensuing scrum and Ben Donaldson booting his team ahead through a third-minute penalty.

But the home side hit back impressively, as scrum-half Tomos Williams linked well with Jones, whose one-handed pass found Morgan, and he powered over for his third try in two Tests.

Gareth Anscombe converted, before Williams went off for a head injury assessment and was replaced by Kieran Hardy.

Donaldson and Anscombe exchanged penalties as Wales led 10-6 after the opening quarter, and there was an impressive momentum about Pivac’s team.

Australia then fell further behind following a slick handling move that ended in Faletau crossing wide out after he collected wing Dyer’s scoring pass.

Anscombe converted and added another penalty, putting Australia firmly behind the eight-ball as they trailed by 14 points midway through the second quarter.

Australia needed a response before the interval, and it arrived through a 33rd-minute try for Fainga’a after the Wallabies executed an impressive lineout drive.

Donaldson converted, but Australia had scrum-half Jake Gordon yellow-carded for deliberate offside following a sharp Dyer break.

Wales could not make them pay, though, with Hardy being held up over the line, and Australia trailed 20-13 at half-time.

Australia then briefly went down to 13 men when replacement prop Tom Robertson, who was on for Wallabies skipper James Slipper, received a yellow card following a scrummaging infringement.

A driving maul rumbling towards the line is a thing of beauty. 😍pic.twitter.com/Ilqw2oGohg

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) November 26, 2022

And Wales made it count, driving a lineout at relentless pace, with Morgan claiming his second try and Anscombe’s conversion restoring a 14-point advantage.

Australia could not handle a rampant Welsh pack, and Dyer scored Wales’ fourth try, with Anscombe converting before he went off after suffering a nasty-looking shoulder injury.

But the game was turned on its head during a scarcely believable final quarter, with Nawaqanitawase’s second try prompting a Welsh collapse as Justin Tipuric was sin-binned for a trip and Elias followed after he collapsed a maul that led to the penalty try.

And there was still time for Lonergan to win a game that was probably Pivac’s 34th and final Test in charge of Wales.

Wales leave it late to edge the Wallabies

Rhys Priestland slotted a penalty after the siren had sounded as Wales snatched a dramatic 29-28 victory over Australia in a thrilling Test in Cardiff on Saturday.

Substitute Priestland’s penalty with the final kick of a frantic game thwarted the Wallabies and sent a 68,000 Principality Stadium crowd wild.

Australia number eight Rob Valetini was sent off after just 15 minutes for a dangerous tackle on Wales lock Adam Beard.

Beard played no further part in the game as a result, but Wales were pushed to the wire and outscored three-two on tries by a resilient Wallabies outfit.

Hooker Ryan Elias and centre Nick Tompkins scored tries for Wales, yet it was fly-half Dan Biggar’s goalkicking that proved the difference, as he amassed 16 points through four penalties and two conversions, until Priestland struck.

Australia, desperate for a win following losses to Scotland and England, made Wales fight every inch of the way despite the numerical disadvantage, as wings Andrew Kellaway and Filipo Daugunu touched down, with scrum-half Nic White also scoring.

James O’Connor booted two penalties and two conversions, yet his conversion attempt of Daugunu’s late score hit the post, and Wales could breathe a huge sigh of relief, despite Kurtley Beale’s 78th-minute penalty.

Wales centre Uilisi Halaholo featured for a first start of the autumn campaign, while wing Josh Adams, prop Tomas Francis and number eight Aaron Wainwright all recovered from injuries.

But the Wallabies were without 118 times-capped skipper Michael Hooper because of a foot injury, so prop James Slipper led the side.

Australia made a dream start, going ahead after just three minutes as they scored a try from their first attack.

Powerful prop Taniela Tupou charged into space and put Wales on the back foot, before centre Hunter Paisami’s cleverly-placed kick allowed wing Kellaway a simple finish, and O’Connor converted.

Biggar opened Wales’ account through a fifth-minute penalty, yet Tupou continued to make his presence felt by having an instant dominant impact in the scrums.

The Wallabies then suffered a huge blow when Valetini was sent off.

His head-on-head high challenge floored Beard, who went off, and referee Mike Adamson had no option but to brandish a red card.

Ben Carter went on for Beard, and Australia were left to play more than a hour with 14 men, although the Wallabies led 10-6 after Biggar and O’Connor exchanged penalties.

It was the sixth time in 12 Tests this year that Wales had seen a player sent off against them.

Australia’s woes continued when Beale received a yellow card for a deliberate knock-on, giving Wales a temporary two-man advantage.

And they immediately punished Australia when scrum-half Tomos Williams broke from a lineout and sent Elias over for a try that Biggar converted.

O’Connor put Australia level through his second penalty, but Wales held the upper hand as half-time approached and Biggar completed a penalty hat-trick that made it 16-13 at the break.

Wales extended their lead eight minutes into the second half as Tompkins interrupted an Australian move when the ball bounced off him, and he gathered possession to sprint away unopposed.

Biggar kicked the conversion, yet Wales were then forced into a change when wing Louis Rees-Zammit limped off and was replaced by Johnny McNicholl.

Australia continued to push hard in the game, but Wales appeared to hold all the aces midway through the third quarter, despite seeing substitute Gareth Thomas sin-binned for a reckless challenge.

It was poor discipline by the Ospreys forward, and offered Australia a glimmer of hope at a time in the game when Wales should have been looking to press the accelerator.

And the Wallabies struck on the hour-mark when White finished off a sweeping move, and O’Connor’s conversion cut the deficit to just three points.

Biggar, though, restored a degree of order by booting a 64th-minute penalty, and Wales led 26-20 before late drama unfolded, Australia briefly led, then Priestland grabbed the glory.

Wales edge out Wallabies to end winless streak

Wales ended a 13-match losing streak against Australia when they claimed a hard-fought 9-6 win in their November Test in Cardiff on Saturday.

In an evenly contested and often dour encounter, both sides committed a plethora of unforced errors and as the scoreline suggests, neither managed to cross the whitewash.

Wales eventually outscored their visitors by three penalties to two with Dan Biggar slotting the winning kick in the game's closing stages.

The Wallabies made a bright start and launched several attacks from the kick off.  In the third minute, Samu Kerevi was in the clear deep inside Wales territory but spilled the ball after an excellent cover tackle from Gareth Anscombe.

The next 10 minutes was a slugfest as both sides tried to gain the ascendancy although Leigh Halfpenny missed an opportunity to open the scoring when he failed with a penalty attempt in the 12th minute.

10 minutes later, he made up for that miss when he slotted a three-pointer off the kicking tee after the Wallabies were penalised for illegal scrummaging.

Australia battled to gain momentum as they were met by a ferocious defensive effort from the hosts although Dan Lydiate and Alun Wyn Jones went offside on defence in the 34th minute and Bernard Foley slotted the resulting penalty to open the Wallabies' account.

The tight nature of the game continued with the sides cancelling each other out with great defence while the breakdown battle, between Wales tearaway Justin Tipuric and the Wallabies' Michael Hooper and David Pocock, was one of the highlights of this Test.

On the stroke of half-time, Halfpenny had a chance to regain the lead for his team but, once again, his shot at goal was wide of the mark which meant the sides were deadlocked at 3-3 at half-time.

The Wallabies had the better of the second half's early exchanges but poor decision making cost them dearly during that period.  In the 51st minute, Tipuric collapsed a maul within goalkicking range but instead of taking a kick at goal from the resulting penalty, Wallabies captain Hooper opted to kick for touch.

That decision backfired when Tolu Latu knocked the ball on after they launched a drive from the subsequent line-out deep inside Wales 22.

Three minutes later, Australia had another chance to extend their lead off the kicking tee, when Liam Williams played the ball on the ground, but Hooper opted to set up another line-out close to Wales' tryline and this time Latu failed to find his jumper at the set-piece.

Those decisions came back to haunt the visitors as Wales regained the lead in the 68th minute courtesy of another Halfpenny penalty after Tatafu Polota-Nau infringed at a ruck just outside his 22.

The Wallabies needed a response and it came in the 75th minute when Pocock showed his class by winning a crucial breakdown penalty for his side and Matt Toomua made no mistake off the tee to draw the visitors level again.

Wales would have the final say, however, as two minutes later, Australia conceded a penalty at the breakdown and Biggar made no mistake from the tee to end his side's long winless run in this fixture.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Pens:  Halfpenny 2, Biggar

For Australia:
Pens:  Foley, Toomua

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 George North, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Gareth Anscombe, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Ross Moriarty, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Adam Beard, 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Nicky Smith
Replacements:  16 Elliot Dee, 17 Rob Evans, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Cory Hill, 20 Ellis Jenkins, 21 Tomos Williams, 22 Dan Biggar, 23 Liam Williams

Australia:  15 Dane Haylett-Petty, 14 Israel Folau, 13 Samu Kerevi, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Sefa Naivalu, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Will Genia, 8 David Pocock, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Jack Dempsey, 5 Adam Coleman, 4 Izack Rodda, 3 Allan Alaalatoa, 2 Tolu Latu, 1 Scott Sio
Replacements:  16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Sekope Kepu, 18 Taniela Tupou, 19 Rob Simmons, 20 Ned Hanigan, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Matt To’omua, 23 Jack Maddocks

Referee:  Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand)
Assistant referees:  Romain Poite (France), Brendon Pickerill (New Zealand)
TMO:  Simon McDowell (Ireland)

Wallabies overpower Wales

The Wallabies secured a 29-21 victory over Wales at the Principality Stadium, outscoring their opponents by four tries to two.

Tries from Tatafu Polota-Nau, Adam Coleman, Michael Hooper and Kurtley Beale proved too much for Wales who scored through Steff Evans and Hallam Amos late on.

Leigh Halfpenny gave Wales an eighth-minute lead as his penalty sailed through the posts.

The Wallabies took the lead with Polota-Nau going over at the back of a lineout driving maul.  Bernard Foley added the extras to make it 7-3 after 13 minutes.

Soon after, Wales retook the lead after good work by Gareth Davies initially to make the break down the right wing.  The ball was recycled to the left where Evans produced a clinical finish.  Halfpenny was, as usual, accurate from the tee and gave the hosts a 10-7 lead.

But the Wallabies hit back immediately with Coleman going over after Foley's grubber bamboozled the Welsh defence.  Marika Koroibete was halted inches from the line and Will Genia's flat, spin-pass was gobbled up by Coleman.  Foley converted as Australia led 14-10 after 23 minutes.

Reece Hodge extended the Wallabies lead with a long-range penalty after Josh Navidi was penalised for holding on after good work by Sean McMahon at the breakdown to get his body over the ball and secure the turnover penalty.

A Halfpenny penalty reduced the deficit to four after 37 minutes but there was still time before the interval for the Wallabies to score another try and it was skipper Hooper who showed good pace to fend off Davies and dot down as the Wallabies took a 22-13 lead into the interval.

Against the run of play, Beale extended the visitors' lead when he pounced on Evans' spill to race through all the way to the line.  Foley converted to make it 29-16 after 64 minutes.

Hooper was then yellow-carded for an offence at the breakdown after repeated infringements from the Wallabies.

And Wales capitalised on their numerical advantage when Amos gathered Davies' kick and managed to dot down within the field of play despite the best efforts of Koroibete.

But the Wallabies had still done too much and ran out 29-21 winners.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  Evans, Amos
Con:  Halfpenny
Pens:  Halfpenny 3

For Australia:
Tries:  Polota-Nau, Coleman, Hooper, Beale
Cons:  Foley 3
Pen:  Hodge

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Liam Williams, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Owen Williams, 11 Steff Evans, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Josh Navidi, 6 Aaron Shingler, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 4 Jake Ball, 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Rob Evans
Replacements:  16 Kristian Dacey, 17 Nicky Smith, 18 Leon Brown, 19 Cory Hill, 20 Sam Cross, 21 Aled Davies, 22 Owen Watkin, 23 Hallam Amos

Australia:  15 Kurtley Beale, 14 Marika Koroibete, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Samu Kerevi, 11 Reece Hodge, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Will Genia, 8 Sean McMahon, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Ned Hanigan, 5 Adam Coleman, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Scott Sio
Replacements:  16 Stephen Moore, 17 Tom Robertson, 18 Allan Alaalatoa, 19 Matt Philip, 20 Ben McCalman, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Karmichael Hunt, 23 Henry Speight

Referee:  Glen Jackson (New Zealand)
Assistant referees:  Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Ian Tempest (England)
TMO:  Graham Hughes (England)

Australia sweep Wales aside

A dominant first-half performance saw Australia win their 12 consecutive Test against Wales with a 32-8 victory in Cardiff on Saturday.

Australia's ambitious quest for a Grand Slam had the perfect start as they outscored Wales with five tries to one.

The visitors effectively won the game in the first 40 minutes in a one-sided half which saw them score three tries while only conceding one penalty.

Australia dominated throughout as they enjoyed the lions share of possession and territory which should have given them an even bigger lead by half time.

Bernard Foley and Leigh Halfpenny exchanged penalties early penalties early on, but it was Michael Cheika's men who looked far more dangerous with ball in hand.  They stretched the play by putting plenty of width on the ball and their ability to get over the advantage line put plenty of pressure on the Wales' defence.

But it was Australia's quick line speed and their ability to offload in the tackle which created plenty of space out wide.  Their first try came courtesy of a five metre lineout, the resulting driving maul gave captain Stephen Moore the perfect platform to get over the line.

Wales struggled to get their hands on the ball and when they did, they failed to get out of their own half and play some rugby on the other side of the field.  They barely had a try-scoring opportunity in the first half, most of their effort going towards stopping the rampant Wallabies from running riot.

Their defence was put under further pressure when Dan Biggar received a yellow card for an early tackle on Dane Haylett-Petty, who looked set for a try in the corner after receiving an offload from the impressive Israel Folau.

Strangely, Australia failed to add any points while Wales were reduced to 14 men, but ironically, as soon as Biggar made his way back onto the field, the Aussies pounced for their second five-pointer.

From a ruck Reece Hodge got an inside pass, allowing him to hit a gap before giving the ball to Folau on his outside.  The full-back drew a defender before giving the ball back to Hodge on his inside for a clear run-in.

Leigh Halfpenny had a poor afternoon with the boot which prevented Wales from keeping the scoreboard ticking over.

Tevita Kuridrani added Australia's third try five minutes from the break which would have left Rob Howley fuming at his side's defensive organisation.  Kuridrani received the ball on the blindside from a ruck and gave a simple dummy pass which allowed him the space to run through, his power and pace enough to secure the points.

The hosts showed some more fight after the break but they lacked any clear plans or dynamism and after enjoying a period with ball in hand, they conceded a try against the run of play, their poor defensive organisation again brutally exposed.

This time it was Foley who simply ran through a big gap in midfield for an easy try which effectively killed the contest.

Wales kept on trying and enjoyed their best period of the game midway through the second half.  Scott Willaims finally got them a consolation try after he received the ball at first receiver, kicked it through and had the pace to recollect and score.

However, the Wallabies had the final say when Haylett-Petty showed enough pace to score a well deserved try to rub more salt in Wales' wounds.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  Williams
Pen:  Halfpenny
Yellow Card:  Biggar

For Australia:
Tries:  Moore, Hodge, Kuridrani, Foley, Haylett-Petty
Cons:  Foley 3
Pen:  Foley

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Scott Williams, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 George North, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Rhys Webb, 8 Ross Moriarty, 7 Justin Tipuric, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Luke Charteris, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Samson Le, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Gethin Jenkins
Replacements:  16 Scott Baldwin, 17 Nicky Smith, 18 Tomas Francis, 19 Cory Hill, 20 James King, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 Sam Davies, 23 Hallam Amos

Australia:  15 Israel Folau, 14 Dane Haylett-Petty, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Reece Hodge, 11 Henry Speight, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Lopeti Timani, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 David Pocock, 5 Adam Coleman, 4 Rory Arnold, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Stephen Moore (c), 1 Scott Sio
Replacements:  16 Tolu Latu, 17 James Slipper, 18 Allan Alaalatoa, 19 Rob Simmons, 20 Scott Fardy, 21 Nick Frisby, 22 Quade Cooper, 23 Sefa Naivalu

Referee:  Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant Referees:  Jérôme Garcès (France), Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
TMO:  Simon McDowell (Ireland)

Wales fall to Wallabies

Australia held off a spirited effort from Wales to condemn their hosts to yet another defeat against their visitors, going down 33-28 on Saturday.

If it wasn't before, it is now a worrying trend for Wales one year out from the World Cup as they went down to their upcoming Pool A rivals.

They had a chance to win but in the end first-half errors and late ill-disciplined saw Australia prevail.

There were no penalties on the board during the first-half as both teams enjoyed lots of space to unleash their dangerous runners in back play.

And it was a player who deserved his start at the base who got the ball rolling as the Osprey Rhys Webb capitalised on space around the ruck after captain Sam Warburton's break, running through untouched from 20 metres out before Leigh Halfpenny landed the successful conversion.

It set the tone for a try-happy half as then Wallaby captain Michael Hooper ran hard at Dan Biggar before offloading to Israel Folau to level.

20 minutes had been played when Folau doubled both his personal and team's account, intercepting a speculative pass from Webb as he set off to the try-line from his own 22.  Bernard Foley sent over the extras as it was a 14-7 ball game on the new hybrid surface.

Wales again displayed tenacity to bounce back and when George North broke on halfway before finding wing Alex Cuthbert for the run-in, we were level at the Millennium Stadium.

The pattern continued on the half-hour mark as in-form centre Tevita Kuridrani powered through the tackles of lock Alun-Wyn Jones and Cuthbert for a strong run to the uprights.  With Foley's two points the Wallabies had once more moved into a seven-point lead.

With Halfpenny having hobbled off, Wales though made some pressure count before half-time as Jones picked from one metre out to make it 21-21 at the break with Biggar's kick.  Fortunately for Wales, it didn't go to the TMO as it looked like double movement.

Upon the turnaround it was Australia who began the stronger as Foley made it 24-21.

Wales meanwhile could have levelled from distance but went for the corner with replacement Rhys Priestland's first touch due to Biggar hobbling off.  Webb soon followed.

Foley continued his great game with a further three points on 56 minutes that made it a 27-21 lead for the Wallabies but thus followed a purple patch for Wales in the visitors 22.  They turned the screw at scrum-time and eventually got their reward with a penalty try for the lead.

However, as so often has been the case for Wales against the southern hemisphere giants, they could not finish the job as a smartly taken Foley drop and then then his third penalty of the game saw the Wallabies to victory.  Wales, again, wonder what might have been.

Man of the match:  He directed Australia superbly well, with his points key to the victory.  Hats off to fly-half Bernard Foley, with mentions going to Sam Warburton and Israel Folau.

Moment of the match:  Poor Rhys Webb.  He started strongly with a try but his intercept pass to Israel Folau was a sucker punch to Wales in the first-half.  A gift seven points.

Villain of the match:  Nothing nasty to report.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  Webb, Cuthbert, AW Jones, Penalty
Con:  Halfpenny 2, Biggar, Priestland

For Australia:
Tries:  Folau 2, Kuridrani
Con:  Foley 3
Pen:  Foley 3
Drop:  Foley

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 George North, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Liam Williams, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Rhys Webb, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton (c), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones, 4 Jake Ball, 3 Samson Lee, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Paul James.
Replacements:  16 Scott Baldwin, 17 Gethin Jenkins, 18 Rhodri Jones, 19 Bradley Davies, 20 Justin Tipuric, 21 Mike Phillips, 22 Rhys Priestland, 23 Cory Allen.

Australia:  15 Israel Folau, 14 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 13 Tevita Kuridrani, 12 Christian Leali'ifano, 11 Joe Tomane, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Ben McCalman, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Sean McMahon, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Sam Carter, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Saia Fainga'a, 1 James Slipper.
Replacements:  16 James Hanson, 17 Tetera Faulkner, 18 Ben Alexander, 19 James Horwill, 20 Will Skelton, 21 Matt Hodgson, 22 Will Genia, 23 Rob Horne.

Referee:  Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant Referees:  Jaco Peyper (South Africa), JP Doyle (England)
TMO:  Graham Hughes (England)

Wales beaten again by Australia

Australia continued their dominant run over Wales with a sublime, exhausting 30-26 victory in the final Test of the year in Cardiff.

It could only ever be agonisingly close, such has been the nature of the battles between these two in recent times.

It came down to the simple matter of whether Wales were good enough to finally win.  With territory and possession five minutes from the finish and only four points down, the chance was there and then destroyed.

In the end Australia found that extra gear.  The acceleration in intensity after going 16-10 down was breathtaking — tries from Israel Folau and Joe Tomane flipping the match on it's head and leaving Wales to chase their way back in.

It was an absolute thriller;  no question.  Take your pick for a standout moment from a pre-Christmas treat littered with them served up under the roof of the Millennium Stadium.

Ireland's noble effort against New Zealand a week ago had seen them playing above their level, but this was a contest between two evenly-matched teams full of running and bruising force that surged and subsided one way and then the other.  There is no love lost between Wales and Australia, that is for sure.

Perhaps it was the lack of scrums in the first half that resulted in such a high level of magnificent entertainment.  It certainly meant that the absence of Adam Jones for Wales was not as dear as predicted.

The Wallabies were ruthless.  Last week against Scotland chances slipped away and the scoreboard failed to reflect the gulf between the two teams but here, against a rival, they endlessly tore up Shaun Edwards' defensive system.

It was Wales though who struck first.  North pounced on a rare lackadaisical mistake from Adam Ashley-Cooper to hack on and then finish in the left corner, sending the Millennium Stadium into raptures.  It was an omen.  It left you breathless.

Quade Cooper marked his 50th cap for Australia with a world-leading performance.

His reverse pass around the back will be his legacy, mimicked in backyards around the world on Sunday, and it came off twice — first for Christian Leali'ifano's equalising try and then creating a chance on a silver platter for Will Genia that the scrum-half left behind.

Leigh Halfpenny's boot faltered only once in the first half, a penalty pinging back off the post but his other two efforts were successful.  Added to an attempt from Dan Biggar, Wales were 16-10 ahead.

Israel Folau though had other plans.  First he was brilliantly denied in the far corner by Scott Williams with a try-saving tackle, with Biggar heading to the bin from the resulting ruck.

But despite monstrous tackles from first North and then Richard Hibbard, Folau cruelly bounced off Mike Phillips and powered through two more tacklers to snatch the try — standing over his victims with the air of a world champion boxer.  By scoring he levelled Lote Tuqiri's Wallaby record of ten tries in a single Test year.

It sling-shotted the Wallabies into the lead following Leali'ifano's conversion, Australia up 17-16 at half-time.

There was to be no second half let up in intensity.  Australia sniffed blood and pummeled the Welsh defensive front through breaks from Nick Cummins and Cooper to leave the home side scuttling backwards.

Leali'ifano added a penalty before Tomane added the Wallabies third try — following close consultation with the TMO over the final pass.  It created a chorus of boos but the more alarming aspect for Wales were the 20 unanswered points added by Australia to put them in the driving seat.

Wales grew desperate, the next score all but deciding the result at 30-16 down.  Liam Williams did his part by racing away down the left touchline, but the Wallabies prowess at the breakdown was too much as they scrambled to safety.

North though was not done.  The Northampton wing flew through Scott Fardy's tackle attempt and then had the power to outmuscle Folau to go in under the posts and drag Wales back within seven points.

Driven by hope and that burning fire to finally put one over the Wallabies, Wales turned to their bench and their pack to suck away the wide channels for Australia.

Three points came after Ben Mowen's indiscretion at the breakdown as the oxygen disappeared ahead of another typically tight finish in this fixture.

Cooper's yellow card then gave Wales the impetus, the fly-half binned for an early tackle as the clock ticked away.

It came down to a tapped penalty for Wales in their own half, the length of the pitch to run in order to finally break that losing streak.  It was a task too far, bringing a pulsating Test match to a close.

Man of the Match:  Quade Cooper's tribute was already written until he was harshly yellow carded.  But he was so good that he still takes this award.  Sensational throughout.  George North a close second.

Moment of the Match:  With a line-out in the Australian 22, Wales sought to deploy their famous 12-man maul but the execution was off and a huge chance wasted.

Villain of the Match:  Despite the sin-binnings of Cooper and Biggar, there was nothing nasty here.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  North 2
Cons:  Halfpenny, Biggar
Pens:  Halfpenny 2, Biggar, Priestland
Yellow Card:  Biggar

For Australia:
Tries:  Leali'ifano, Folau, Tomane
Cons:  Leali'ifano 3
Pens:  Leali'ifano 3

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Owen Williams, 12 Scott Williams, 11 George North, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Toby Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton (capt), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Ian Evans, 4 Alun-Wyn Jones, 3 Rhodri Jones, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Ken Owens, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Samson Lee, 19 Ryan Jones, 20 Justin Tipuric, 21 Rhodri Williams, 22 Rhys Priestland, 23 Liam Williams.

Australia:  15 Israel Folau, 14 Joe Tomane, 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 12 Christian Leali'ifano, 11 Nick Cummins, 10 Quade Cooper, 9 Will Genia, 8 Ben Mowen (c), 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Scott Fardy, 5 James Horwill, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 James Slipper.
Replacements:  16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Benn Robinson, 18 Ben Alexander, 19 Kane Douglas, 20 Dave Dennis, 21 Nic White, 22 Mike Harris, 23 Bernard Foley.

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees:  Alain Rolland, John Lacey (both Ireland)

Beale breaks Welsh hearts

A last-minute try from Kurtley Beale denied Wales victory over old foes Australia as the Gold run continued with a 14-12 result on Saturday.

The loss meant that Wales, the current Grand Slam champions and World Cup semi-finalists, fell out of the top-eight seeds for RWC 2015, the draw for which takes place on Monday.

The game had looked to be going Wales' way at 12-9 with a minute to play, but replacement flanker Dave Dennis found a metre of space out wide with the Welsh defence flagging and fed Beale, who outpaced Alex Cuthbert to the corner.

It was a ninth victory in 15 Tests of a marathon season for Australia and meant they leapfrogged South Africa into second in the IRB rankings.

But the defeat was Wales' seventh on the trot and denied them the chance of a first win over a southern hemisphere nation since their 2008 victory over the same opposition.

Leigh Halfpenny kicked four penalties for Wales, who had lost November matches against Argentina, Samoa and New Zealand, with Beale notching up three of his own for the visitors.

Beale missed two other penalty attempts and replacement Mike Harris another in the sixth match between the two sides in 13 months, the Wallabies winning all five previous encounters, including the third-place play-off at the World Cup and a closely-fought three-Test series on Australian soil in the summer.

Beale missed a straightforward early penalty attempt as referee Wayne Barnes took to his whistle against a series of sloppy Welsh ruck infringements.

The visitors, fielding just three players from last year's season-ending victory in Cardiff, dominated early possession and territory, but it was Wales who first set the stadium alight when Cuthbert was set free on his own line.

A fine covering tackle by Berrick Barnes smothered Cuthbert into touch.

Beale was successful with his second penalty, struck from the halfway line, and Halfpenny responded almost immediately with his own 52-metre effort.

The Welsh full-back then pushed the home side into the lead with a second penalty in the 23rd minute after returning Wallaby openside David Pocock was penalised for not rolling away in the tackle.

Halfpenny then split the defence and while he collided with Barnes chasing his own chip ahead across the line, Toby Faletau crashed through, only to be beaten to the ball by opposite number Wycliff Palu.

Beale drew the scores level with a second long-range penalty but failed with an easier effort that would have seen the Wallabies into the lead.

Wales, with fly-half Rhys Priestland showing signs of his old confidence, looked to run everything, but Australia showed why they remain in the top three countries in the world with an aggressive, counter-rucking defence.

The Wallabies ended the half 9-6 up after Beale nailed his fifth attempt at goal after home captain Sam Warburton was penalised, again at the ruck, while Halfpenny sent a late effort wide.

The second period opened with a full seven minutes of aerial ping-pong, neither side able to capitalise on any real territorial gain.

Halfpenny, comfortably Wales' best player in the four November Tests, was on hand to again show his defensive abilities with a fine covering tackle with Ryan Jones on Drew Mitchell, who should have gone wide after a Barnes feint.

The Welsh full-back finally drew Wales level on 55 minutes with a penalty after the Wallaby scrum wilted and then put Wales into the lead when Australia captain Nathan Sharpe, playing in his 116th and final Test, was found on the wrong side of a ruck.

Replacement Mike Harris then saw his penalty drift wide as the Wallabies tried to find a way through the Welsh defence, which finally flagged when Dennis found Beale who finished excellently in the corner.

Man of the match:  We go for Leigh Halfpenny after another impressive performance at the back for his country.  He was yet again faultless covering the ground in attack and defence while his kicking from hand and tee means that he edges out Wallaby flank David Pocock.

Moment of the match:  Of course, that last-gasp try from Kurtley Beale.

Villain of the match:  Nothing too dirty to report.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Pen:  Halfpenny 4

For Australia:
Try:  Beale
Pen:  Beale 3

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Liam Williams, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Toby Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton (c), 6 Aaron Shingler, 5 Luke Charteris, 4 Lou Reed, 3 Scott Andrews, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Ken Owens, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Samson Lee, 19 Ryan Jones, 20 Justin Tipuric, 21 Tavis Knoyle, 22 Dan Biggar, 23 Scott Williams.

Australia:  15 Berrick Barnes, 14 Nick Cummins, 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 12 Ben Tapuai, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Kurtley Beale, 9 Nick Phipps, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 David Pocock, 6 Scott Higginbotham, 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 Kane Douglas, 3 Ben Alexander, 2 Tatafu Polota Nau, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements:  16 Stephen Moore, 17 James Slipper, 18 Sekope Kepu, 19 Dave Dennis, 20 Michael Hooper, 21 Brendan McKibbin, 22 Mike Harris, 23 Digby Ioane.

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees:  Romain Poite (France), Greg Garner (England)
Television match official:  Marshall Kilgore (Ireland)

Wallabies deny Wales ... again

For the second time in as many weeks Australia needed a late penalty to edge past Wales, winning 20-19 in an engrossing clash in Sydney.

Berrick Barnes landed a penalty five minutes from full-time to break Welsh hearts after yet another spirited display from the visitors.

The result leaves Wales winless against the Wallabies on Australia soil since 1969.

When the dust settles, the Welsh will have some long analysis to do, both on themselves and on Craig Joubert, who had a big influence on the game.  He attempted to lay down the law as strictly as possible, but ended up breaking the rhythm and causing frustration a little too much, while also failing to deal with a lot of unwillingness to scrum properly from both sides.  Australia responded slightly better overall but both teams looked scared to attempt things at times, too desperate at others.

They'll also reflect on the bounce of the ball which took James Hook's long hack downfield into touch milliseconds before the chasing Hook, 10 metres ahead of his nearest opponent arrived to gather it.  Sometimes you just can't buy a break.

But there's little point in the Welsh screaming at Joubert or Lady Luck.  They could also look to the number of restarts they failed to deal with and the two clear penalties in the 73rd and 74th minutes, of which first cost them good attacking position and the second the winning three points.

There was nothing to choose between the teams at half time in rugby terms but Barnes' fourth penalty just before the interval gave Australia a 12-9 lead — the four penalty to three scoreline an indication both of the broken rhythm of the game and the incessant stream of penalties.  The second half was better as the teams tired and the game broke up naturally.

It took 61 minutes for the first try to be scored, but when Ryan Jones crashed over under the posts on a pick-and-go after Alex Cuthbert's run Wales took the lead for the first time and were good value for it.  More precise on attack and threatening with ball in hand, the scrum was beginning to turn the screw as well.

The try drew an immediate response though — again from one of those spilled restarts — and the defence, panicked, folded in and left Rob Horne oodles of space outside.  Even then, Horne almost butchered it, ending up controlling the ball between forearm and leg as he touched down.  the TMO deemed that enough downward pressure and Australia had the lead back.

Leigh Halfpenny's fourth penalty — his second from 50 metres — with ten minutes left on the clock put the Six Nations champions back in front to set up a grandstand finish.

Barnes held his nerve, however, to split the uprights in the 75th minute to give Australia a one-point win and a 3-0 series clean sweep.

Man of the match:  Try-scorer Ryan Jones and Jonathan Davies had strong games for the Welsh.  A mention too for Barnes, who was near faultless from the kicking tee and landed the winning points with a cool swing of the leg.  But we'll go for Wallaby skipper David Pocock who was a constant thorn in the side of the Welshman at the breakdown.

Moment of the match:  The TMO made big call when he awarded Rob Horne's try.  At first glance it looked like the centre lost control in act of going over.  It would have ben extremely harsh to deny the try and, in the end, it turned out be a game-changing decision...

Villain of the match:  No nasty stuff to report...

The scorers:

For Australia:
Try:  Horne
Pens:  Barnes 5

For Wales:
Try:  R. Jones
Con:  Halfpenny
Pens:  Halfpenny 4

Australia:  15 Kurtley Beale, 14 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 13 Rob Horne, 12 Pat McCabe, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Berrick Barnes, 9 Will Genia, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 David Pocock (c), 6 Scott Higginbotham, 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 Sitaleki Timani, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tatafu Polota Nau, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements:  16 Stephen Moore, 17 Ben Alexander, 18 Rob Simmons, 19 Dave Dennis, 20 Michael Hooper, 21 Nic White, 22 Anthony Fainga'a.

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Ashley Beck, 11 George North, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Ryan Jones, 7 Sam Warburton (c), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Ken Owens, 17 Paul James, 18 Luke Charteris, 19 Justin Tipuric, 20 Rhys Webb, 21 James Hook, 22 Scott Williams.

Referee:  Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant referees:  Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Jonathon White (New Zealand)
Television match official:  Vinny Munro (New Zealand)

Harris wins it for Wallabies

Australia's replacement pivot Mike Harris killed off Wales' hopes of keeping their Test series alive after slotting a last-gasp penalty kick to steal a 25-23 win in Melbourne.

It was a sad case of close but no cigar for the Welsh who came within seconds of winning Down Under for the first time in 43 years and set up a series decider.

However, Harris — on for Berrick Barnes — was called upon to provide the killer blow for the Wallabies after a maul was ruled to have been dragged down and Australia's New Zealand-born super sub didn't disappoint.

The defeat left a devasted Wales outfit once again reflecting on a golden chance gone begging in a thrilling encounter that saw the lead change hands nine times as the match went down to the wire.

The visitors showed their trademark fighting spirit at Etihad Stadium but the loss meant a series victory for Australia, who took out the first Test in Brisbane last week.

Wales got off to a the perfect start, launching a sustained attack after just three minutes which ended when wing George North side-stepped past Wycliff Palu and Rob Simmons to touch down.

Leigh Halfpenny kicked the easy conversion but the hosts went on to have the better of the half and Barnes kicked a pair of penalties to reduce their deficit to 7-6.

The diminuitive fly-half then made a crucial break on the stroke of half-time after slicing through a large gap between Sam Warburton and Ashley Beck, before coolly finding Rob Horne on his shoulder and the centre cruised over the line.

Barnes added the extras to make it a seven-pointer and the Welsh trailed 13-7 at the break.

However, the tourists once again started the better of the two sides after Ashley Beck and Jonathan Davies combined to show off their soccer skills by hacking the ball downfield when Will Genia's pass went astray.

Beck hit the deck, but Davies got a favourable bounce and calmly collected the ball near the line to score.  Halfpenny once again added the extras and Wales were back in front (13-14).

Barnes booted a pair of three-pointers either side of a Halfpenny penalty and Australia were clinging to a 19-17 lead, but they then lost wing Cooper Vuna to the sin-bin for tackling Halfpenny in the air.

The Welsh full-back kicked the resulting penalty to put his side up 20-19 but the Wallabies went straight onto the attack and Barnes made it 22-20 when Wales infringed at a ruck.

The see-saw battle continied when the reliable Halfpenny was on target once again when Ben Alexander was penalised at a scrum 13 minutes from time before Barnes — who had been struggling with a leg injury — then put a kick wide of the posts with six minutes left.

But the Wallabies got another chance when, with the 80 minutes having elapsed, Richard Hibbard infringed at a driving maul, and Harris calmly stepped up to drill a tricky penalty straight through the uprights.

Man of the match:  For Wales, Leigh Halfpenny kept his side in the hunt thanks to a flawless kicking display and perhaps would've been awarded this gong had Wales won.  However, the official man of the match award went to new dad Berrick Barnes and it's hard to argue against it.  Australia's number ten set up the Wallabies' only try of the match and contributed 17 points before being replaced.

Moment of the match:  We're pretty sure every pub in Wales now have a picture of Mike Harris on the bullseye of their dartboards following the replacement's match-winning kick in extra time.

Villain of the match:  Mike Harris — we were looking forward to seeing the series head into a decider next weekend!  But we won't hold it against you ... too much.

The scorers:

For Australia:
Try:  Horne
Con:  Barnes
Pens:  Barnes 5, Harris

For Wales:
Tries:  North, Davies
Cons:  Halfpenny 2
Pens:  Halfpenny 3

Australia:  15 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 14 Cooper Vuna, 13 Rob Horne, 12 Pat McCabe, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Berrick Barnes, 9 Will Genia, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 David Pocock (c), 6 Scott Higginbotham, 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements:  16 Stephen Moore, 17 Ben Alexander, 18 Dave Dennis, 19 Michael Hooper, 20 Nic White, 21 Anthony Fainga'a, 22 Mike Harris.

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Ashley Beck, 11 George North, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Ryan Jones, 7 Sam Warburton (c), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun Wyn Jones, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Richard Hibbard, 17 Paul James, 18 Luke Charteris, 19 Justin Tipuric, 20 Rhys Webb, 21 James Hook, 22 Scott Williams.

Referee:  Chris Pollock (New Zealand)

Australia bounce back in Brisbane

Australia bounced back from their shock loss to Scotland with a morale-boosting 27-19 win over Wales at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on Saturday.

What a difference four days makes, as the hosts dug deep to prove their doubters wrong and take a 1-0 lead in the series against this year's Six Nations Grand Slam champions.

Wales, who at one stage trailed by fourteen points (20-6), managed to claw their way back into the match and cut the deficit to one (20-19) in an absorbing encounter.

But a try by centre Pat McCabe in the 67th minute proved to be the killer blow as the Welsh slumped to their fifth straight defeat to Australia.

The Wallabies' win takes the heat off under-pressure coach Robbie Deans, whose side rebounded impressively from Tuesday's Scottish disaster with an enterprising ball-in-hand game plan at their Brisbane fortress.

Wales — desperate to end a 43-year drought Down Under — were forced to play catch-up rugby throughout, and it all started when Berrick Barnes opened the scoring with a straightforward penalty kick in the ninth minute.

Australia looked to have created a certain try when Rob Horne darted to the left, but Alex Cuthbert — outstanding for the visitors — prevented the scoring pass with a crucial tackle.

However, just moments later the Wallabies crossed following a series of drives from their forwards that ended with number eight Scott Higginbotham crashing over for his first Test try.

Barnes added the extras and Australia led 10-0 after 16 minutes.

Wales finally got themselves on the scoreboard courtesy of a Leigh Halfpenny, but the men in red were struggling to find any momentum against a Wallabies outfit playing with their tails up.

The tourists then suffered a major blow on the half-hour mark when destructive winger George North was replaced with a quad injury to put him in doubt for next week's second Test in Melbourne.

Trailing 10-3 at half-time, any thoughts of a second-half respite by Australia was extinguished immediately by Will Genia who needed less than a minute after the break to grab his team's second try.

The Wallaby scrum-half exploited space expertly and then effected an outrageous side-step to negotiate the last line of defence.  The finish was a moment of individual brilliance and highlighted Genia's running threat as he dived over for the converted try to extend Australia's lead even further (17-3).

Another Halfpenny penalty was then cancelled out by a Barnes drop-goal, but Halfpenny again nudged Wales closer with a third penalty (20-9).

As the game went on, it was evident that the hosts began to tire in the second half and were not as effective at controlling the ball at close quarters.  And as the game grew looser, Wales came into their own.

Ashley Beck replaced centre Scott Williams and with his first touch of the ball, put Cuthbert over for his fourth Test try.  Halfpenny converted and added an excellent penalty from out wide to cut the deficit to 20-19 on 63 minutes.

Wales were eying a remarkable turnaround, but Australia showed their clinical edge when they needed it most.  Genia was again the creator, picking his pass to McCabe who crashed over with thirteen minutes remaining.

Barnes converted and Australia were once again eight points ahead.

Twice Cuthbert threatened to break clear for a second try that Wales desperately needed, but was denied as Australia recovered to hold out for victory.

Man of the match:  Alex Cuthbert was Wales' standout player,, while David Pocock, Scott Higginbotham, Berrick Barnes and Adam Ashley-Cooper all made significant contributions for Australia.  But it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who gets our vote — Will Genia take a bow.  Apart from his try, Genia looked every bit the general in the number nine position.

Moment of the match:  Genia's try ... pure magic.

Villain of the match:  No malice to report!

The scorers:

For Australia:
Tries:  Higginbotham, Genia, McCabe
Cons:  Barnes 3
Pens:  Barnes
Drop:  Barnes

For Wales:
Try:  Cuthbert
Con:  Halfpenny
Pen:  Halfpenny 4

Australia:  15 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 14 Cooper Vuna, 13 Rob Horne, 12 Pat McCabe, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Berrick Barnes, 9 Will Genia, 8 Wycliff Palu , 7 David Pocock (c), 6 Scott Higginbotham, 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 Rob Simmons , 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements:  16 Stephen Moore, 17 Ben Alexander, Dave Dennis, 18 Michael Hooper, 19 Nic White, 20 Anthony Fainga'a, 21 Mike Harris.

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Scott Williams, 11 George North, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Toby Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton (c), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Luke Charteris, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Ken Owens, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Matthew Rees, 17 Paul James, 18 Alun Wyn Jones, 19 Ryan Jones, 20 Lloyd Williams, 21 James Hook, 22 Ashley Beck.

Referee:  Craig Joubert (South Africa)

Shane's send-off pooped by Wallabies

Despite scoring a late try in his final game for Wales, Shane Williams was handed a losing send-off in Cardiff as Australia prevailed 24-18 on Saturday.

The result made it four wins in a row for Australia over Wales, as they backed up their victory when the teams last met in the RWC bronze final, and extended the hosts' poor record against the Tri-Nations to just one success in sixteen Tests.

But the 34-year-old Williams, to the delight of a crowd of more than 61,000, had the last word when, with his final act in a Wales jersey, he scored a typically jinking try in the corner just before full-time to extend his record to 58 tries.

The clash, played under a closed roof, changed when, with Wales 6-3 up early in the second half, home full-back Leigh Halfpenny was sent to the sin-bin and Australia scored 21 unanswered points while he was off the field.

Wales took a sixth minute lead when Rhys Priestland kicked a 40 metre penalty.

Shane Williams had to wait thirteen minutes to get his first touch but, soon afterwards, he came across from the left wing to the right to help keep an attack alive.  But a promising move ended when centre Scott Williams dropped the ball short of the line.

Australia's James O'Connor, playing his first Test at fly-half, then missed a straightforward penalty chance that would have levelled the game before Australia went close to scoring a try on the half hour.

After a surging run by full-back Adam Ashley-Cooper, Berrick Barnes's clever cross kick was gathered close to Wales's line by Wallaby right wing Lachie Turner.

But Shane Williams, once again showing his defensive worth, just did enough to force Turner into touch before he grounded the ball.  Although it needed several minutes' study by video referee Geoff Warren before Australia were denied a try.

Priestland and O'Connor then exchanged penalties, both awarded for offside, to leave Wales three points in front at half-time.

Australia emerged for the second period without openside flanker David Pocock, replaced by Radike Samo, and soon went close after a fine handling move saw O'Connor launch a counter-attack involving Barnes and Ashley-Cooper.

But after Barnes, involved for a second time, kicked ahead, O'Connor was tackled without the ball in sight of the line by Halfpenny and Jonathan Kaplan sent him to the sin-bin.

It was an expensive error, with Australia scrum-half Will Genia forcing his way over for a close range try which O'Connor converted.  O'Connor then missed a simple penalty, the ball hitting the post, minutes later but it hardly mattered.

It was O'Connor's excellent cut-out pass that sent Turner in for a try at the corner and he then made no mistake with the tricky conversion.

Wales were still a man down when Samo's pass found Barnes for Australia's third try.

The home side did staunch the flow of Australia points with their first try in the 66th minute after Priestland followed up after good work out wide by replacement forward Ryan Jones.

But Priestland's conversion attempt hit the post and Australia were still 24-11 in front before Shane Williams scored the try the crowd wanted.  An ideal way for him to cap his Test career.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  Priestland, Williams
Con:  Biggar
Pen:  Priestland 2

For Australia:
Tries:  Genia, Turner, Barnes
Con:  O'Connor
Pen:  O'Connor 3

Wales:  15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 George North, 13 Scott Williams, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Shane Williams, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Lloyd Williams, 8 Toby Faletau, 7 Sam Warburton (c), 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Ian Evans, 4 Bradley Davies, 3 Scott Andrews, 2 Huw Bennett, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Matthew Rees, 17 Ryan Bevington, 18 Ryan Jones, 19 Justin Tipuric, 20 Tavis Knoyle, 21 Dan Biggar, 22 Alex Cuthbert.

Australia:  15 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 14 Lachie Turner, 13 Anthony Fainga'a, 12 Berrick Barnes, 11 Digby Ioane, 10 James O'Connor, 9 Will Genia, 8 Ben McCalman, 7 David Pocock, 6 Scott Higginbotham, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 James Horwill, 3 Salesi Ma'afu, 2 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1 James Slipper.
Replacements:  16 Stephen Moore, 17 Ben Alexander, 18 Nathan Sharpe, 19 Radike Samo, 20 Ben Lucas, 21 Ben Tapuai, 22 Nick Phipps.

Referee:  Jonathan Kaplan
Assistant referees:  Dave Pearson, Jérôme Garces
TMO:  Geoff Warren

Wallabies take the spoils in Cardiff

It wasn't anything to shout home about, but Australia got the job done at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff after beating Wales 25-16 on Saturday.

The Wallabies were a far cry from the team that humbled the mighty All Blacks a week ago, but made the most of their opportunities to record back-to-back wins on the road.

Australia outscored their hosts three tries to one -- David Pocock, Kurtley Beale and Ben Alexander all touching down for the Wallabies who produced some dazzling running rugby at times in Cardiff.

However, their scrummaging left plenty to be desired as they were repeatedly overpowered and outmanoeuvred by the Welsh pack.

Wales, though, could not turn that forward dominance into points and had just a converted Richie Rees try and three Stephen Jones penlaties to show for their efforts as Australia ran out worthy winners.

Wales got off to the perfect start and were in front as early as the second minute, after forcing a turnover from the kick-off which then led to three points for Stephen Jones courtesy of hooker Saia Fainga'a strolling offsides.

Australia responded in the best possible way with the simplest of tries to David Pocock, who took advantage of a lack of Welsh defenders to dive over from close range beside the posts.

It was a rather comical error from the hosts, who had used the majority of their resources to fish out what they thought was turnover ball from a ruck, before Will Genia popped up with ball in hand to put Pocock over for the score.

James O'Connor added the extras from bang in front and the Wallabies stole the lead with seven minutes gone on the clock.  Stephen Jones had a chance to close the gap, but pulled his second penalty attempt wide.

The Welsh pivot's third, however, sailed through the uprights which cut Australia's lead to a single point with nine minutes of the first half remaining.

O'Connor then failed to raise the flags with his first penalty shot of the match, before lock Nathan Sharpe was denied a try by some extraordinary defence by Wales on their line.

A hack upfield from centre Tom Shanklin relieved the pressure and gave Wales some much-needed territory inside Australia's scoring zone.

The hosts had a chance to end the half in the same manner they started, but Stephen Jones was unsuccessful once again -- a miss that cost Wales a certain lead at the break.  Instead, the Wallabies headed into the half-time sheds 7-6 up and well aware they had a game on their hands.

However, Wales' tight grip on their southern hemisphere rivals was loosened slightly in the second half following a second try to the Wallabies.

A Quade Cooper grubber came flying back into Kurtely Beales' hands like a boomerang after rebounding off a Welsh player's knee, which allowed the Wallaby full-back to run around prop Gethin Jenkins and put O'Connor away down the touchline.

With one man to beat, O'Connor swung the ball inside to the supporting Beale who finished off with an easy run-in that stretched Australia's lead to eight points following O'Connor's conversion.

Down but not out, Wales kept themselves in with a shout after Stephen Jones found his target to take the scores to 14-9.  Though it seemed whenever the home side threatened any resemblance of a comeback, Australia replied by scoring a try as Ben Alexander crossed the whitewash next -- the prop's first for his country.

Beale almost scored a brilliant individual second try as he beat Mike Phillips to a high ball before sending a cheeky kick around James Hook, but the marauding full-back could not quite collect and touch down under pressure from the retreating Hook.

Minutes later, Tom Shanklin tackled Pocock without the ball when a try was on and was sent to the sin bin.  O'Connor kicked the ensuing penalty to make it 22-9 in favour of the Wallabies.

Wales, though, remained competitive even with 14 men thanks to their pack, which won two scrum penalities five metres out from Australia's tryline.  When the teams scrummed for the third time in as many minutes, the ball popped out the back and replacement scrum-half Richie Rees scored a try that gave the hosts hope.

However, that was shortlived as a 72-minute penalty from O'Connor secured the result for the Wallabies, who lost the scrum battle but won the war.

Man of the match:  Without a doubt, Kurtley Beale who was the inspiration behind Australia's win.

Moment of the match:  There weren't many, but Beale's try certainly was a crucial score to open the second half, and kept Australia in the driving seat.

Villain of the match:  Poor Tom Shanklin, he comitted himself to the tackle ... but was perhaps a wee bit too enthusiastic.  Guilty as charged.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  R Rees
Cons:  Biggar
Pens:  S Jones 3

For Australia:
Tries:  Pocock, Beale, Alexander
Cons:  O'Connor 2
Pens:  O'Connor 2

Wales:  15 James Hook, 14 Will Harries, 13 Tom Shanklin, 12 Andrew Bishop, 11 Shane Williams, 10 Stephen Jones, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Jonathan Thomas, 7 Sam Warburton, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Alun-Wyn Jones, 4 Brad Davies, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees (c), 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Huw Bennett, 17 Paul James, 18 Deiniol Jones, 19 Martyn Williams, 20 Richie Rees, 21 Dan Biggar, 22 Chris Czekaj.

Australia:  15 Kurtley Beale, 14 James O'Connor, 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 12 Matt Giteau, 11 Drew Mitchell, 1o Quade Cooper, 9 Will Genia, 8 Ben McCalman, 7 David Pocock, 6 Rocky Elsom (c), 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 Mark Chisholm, 3 Ben Alexander, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements:  16 Saia Fainga'a, 17 James Slipper, 18 Dean Mumm, 19 Richard Brown, 20 Luke Burgess, 21 Berrick Barnes, 22 Lachie Turner.

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)

Four-try Australia dominate Wales

Australia answered so many questions at the Millennium Stadium as they outplayed Wales 33-12 on Saturday.

Say what you will about the Wallabies but they do possess a class and zest that can dominate anyone on their day.  This was one of those unfortunately for the shell-shocked Welsh, who were left chasing gold shadows and falling off tackles for large parts of the Cardiff contest.

Pre-tour injuries to the tourists' starting centre duo were finally put behind them while the lateral hosts were hampered by losing Leigh Halfpenny, Shane Williams and Matthew Rees to go with the absent Mike Phillips, Ryan Jones and Tom Shanklin.

But one suspects that not even a full-strength Welsh under the roof would have stopped this rampant Australian outfit in this kind of form, as they were simply in another league on their final 2009 outing.  And yes, it went a long way to banishing any lingering memories of Murrayfield.

It was also to be a much-improved performance from fly-half Matt Giteau as his combination with Quade Cooper looked a cut above opposite numbers Stephen Jones and Jonathan Davies.

Quickly into his stride, the Brumby knocked over the opening three points from 50 metres after Ospreys tighthead Paul James was penalised at scrum-time.  And that proved to be the catalyst for the visitors, with centre Cooper spotting some lazy inside defence to put a racing Peter Hynes up to the home 22-metre.

What followed was a script that Wales' worst nightmare could not even match.

The departure of last week's double try-scorer Williams -- due to what looked like an innocuous injury -- was then followed up by fellow Lions Halfpenny and Rees leaving the field.  Now it really looked like being Australia's day.

More and more pressure was consequently being applied on the fragile-looking Welsh line and with Giteau intent to put things right, one sensed there was plenty more defending to do with 70 minutes remaining on the matchday clock.

Giteau was of course the orchestrator when the hosts were caught flat-footed soon after while the then-present Halfpenny left his job of watching the space in-behind.

The fly-half spotted this blunder and slid through a perfectly-weighted grubber that sat up nicely for man-of-the-match Digby Ioane.  But moments later the playmaker's vision was penalised by Barnes, who adjudged Hynes to be in front of a second cross-field kick that came across to the right.  Halfpenny slotted over the points with aplomb from 50 metres.

Then came an Australian double score, seconds later I might add.  Benn Robinson was able to stretch his legs down the left before feeding Drew Mitchell in support, who in turn sent James Horwill over for the visitors' second five-pointer.

Gold pressure continued to come in front of a quiet Cardiff support and following sustained pressure, it was then the turn of David Pocock to reach over and cross after a smart ball from hooker Stephen Moore.

An sign that mission was firmly accomplished had to be the sight of the impressive Pocock being held back on the bench for the whole second period, a second period that had a depressing air of inevitability about it from a home perspective.

Wales were predictably finished off in a clinical manner in the end when Giteau carved them open and Polota-Nau touched down on 61 minutes.  The on-song number ten added the extras, putting a seal on a high-class display packed with flair and deadly attacking execution while Wales must now regroup ahead of their Six Nations opener against England on February 6.

Man of the match:  So many Australian names come to mind.  The impressive first-half effort from David Pocock, the constant threat of Peter Hynes coming off his wing, Matt Giteau, both Benn Robinson and Ben Alexander.  But for his all-round showing in Stirling Mortlock's shoes, Digby Ioane picks up the award for his dynamism that had Wales struggling for answers.

Moment of the match:  Wales had a gilt-edged chance to get themselves back in the contest when Jamie Roberts was put through a hole.  All he had to do was back himself or offload possession to the supporting Tom James, but the winger slid from the pass and the chance to close matters had gone.

Villain of the match:  A game played in good spirits.  No award.

The scorers:

For Wales:
Pens:  Halfpenny, Jones 3

For Australia:
Tries:  Ioane, Horwill, Pocock, Polota-Nau
Con:  Giteau
Pen:  Giteau

Wales:  15 James Hook, 14 Leigh Halfpenny, 13 Jamie Roberts, 12 Jonathan Davies, 11 Shane Williams, 10 Stephen Jones, 9 Dwayne Peel, 8 Andy Powell (c), 7 Martyn Williams, 6 Dan Lydiate, 5 Luke Charteris, 4 Alun-Wyn Jones, 3 Paul James, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Huw Bennett, 17 Duncan Jones, 18 Jonathan Thomas, 19 Sam Warburton, 20 Martin Roberts, 21 Andrew Bishop, 22 Tom James.

Australia:  15 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 14 Peter Hynes, 13 Digby Ioane, 12 Quade Cooper, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Matt Giteau, 9 Will Genia, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 David Pocock, 6 Rocky Elsom (c), 5 Dean Mumm, 4 James Horwill, 3 Ben Alexander, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements:  16 Tatafu Polota Nau, 17 Matt Dunning, 18 Mark Chisholm, 19 George Smith, 20 Luke Burgess, 21 James O'Connor, 22 Kurtley Beale.

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees:  Romain Poite (France), Peter Allan (Scotland)
Television match officials:  Geoff Warren (England)
Assessor:  Patrick Robin (France)

Wales finish November on a high

Wales finally got what they had been after, a Southern Hemisphere scalp, when they beat Australia 21-18 in a vintage game of rugby at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday.

The home side, desperate to be recognised as one of the world's top sides, came into the game on the back of morale-sapping defeats at the hands of South Africa and then New Zealand.  Australia knew a win would see them finish their European tour unbeaten -- as it was that eluded them, but what a game of rugby!

After a series of one-sided and kicking-orientated Test matches in November, both sides served up a fine Test match packed full of excitement and tension.  More than that it proved Wales have the ability, if not always the application, to mix it with the top dogs of world rugby.

The early omens favoured Wales, first Stirling Mortlock departed with barely two minutes on the board, and then two minutes later Wales scored with such ease from a well-constructed move.  Shane Williams started and finished the move by freeing Lee Byrne and Jamie Roberts before popping up on the wing to score his 44th Test try.

But any hopes of a bright start yielding anything more than Williams' try were dashed when Mark Chisholm raced over sixty metres for a try against the run of play, silencing the crowd in the process.  Moments later and Jamie Roberts, who had collided with Mortlock in the opening minutes, also left the field of play, and suddenly the pendulum had swung the way of Australia.

Matt Giteau added a clever drop goal, after Wales held firm under a barrage of attacks, and it seemed as if Australia were slowly taking control.  Despite defeats against South Africa and New Zealand, Wales retained a positive mindset and refused to let the Wallabies settle into a rhythm, attacking at every chance.

Wales' ability to offload in the tackle had Australia at sixes and sevens and following a barnstorming run from Andy Powell they were off and running again.  There was no try, but a yellow card to Stephen Moore and three points from the boot of Stephen Jones allowed the home side to retain their grip on the game, despite a few areas of concern.

An over-throw at the line-out allowed Chisholm to get Australia going, and continued problems for hooker Matthew Rees hampered Wales as they looked to maintain their tempo and intensity with ball in hand.

Despite problems at the line-out, and a lack of impact in the midfield without Roberts on the field, Wales found their attacking intent again and reaped the rewards with a fine try.  Powell started the move, jinking past several hapless Wallaby defenders, before charging forward to give Wales the impetus they so badly needed.

On the back of Powell's run Wales stretched Australia across the width of the pitch, before Byrne picked a sublime angle off Shane Williams' shoulder to slice through under the posts.  The belief was restored as Wales went into half-time with a five-point cushion, and they had only played in patches.

A fluffed Jones penalty in the opening minute of the second half denied Wales the chance to extend their lead, followed by a successful effort from Giteau to narrow the gap to two points.  Jones then proceeded to miss another relatively simple chance as Wales continued to pressure their opponents.

With the game hanging in the balance, both sides continued to chance their arm, adding to what was already a tremendous Test.  Powell, as superbly as he was playing with ball in hand, was beginning to haemorrhage penalties which slowly began to cost Wales valuable field position.  Warren Gatland, not wanting to take any risks, hauled Powell off to rousing applause as Wales looked to capitalise on a golden opportunity.

Finally, after two failed attempts in previous weeks, Wales showed the composure and discipline to close out a game, and in some style.  Jones kicked his second penalty, following another spell of solid defence from Wales, to give Gatland's troops a two-score margin -- a priceless commodity in Test rugby when the clock is ticking.

However, never ones to go quietly into the night, Australia rallied for one last attack and, finding Wales wanting in defence eventually, scored to set up a grandstand finish.  Giteau missed his drop-kick conversion and despite the hooter sounding Alan Lewis insisted the restart was taken.

Cue three minutes of frantic rugby as Australia looked for an unlikely win, and Wales defended as if their lives depended on it.  Knowing the way Gatland reacted to defeat against South Africa you wouldn't blame them for thinking exactly that.

The tackles continued to fly in and eventually Wales forced the all-important error that sealed a memorable victory.  With the Six Nations looming on the horizon Gatland will be full of confidence that his side can defend their crown, and will want them to raise the standards once again -- at least if he wants to see them beating the world's best on a regular basis.

Man of the Match:  So many candidates from both sides after a superb game.  Matt Giteau was full of life, if not a little lost without Stirling Mortlock by his side, whilst Nathan Sharpe and Mark Chisholm got through a huge amount of work in defence and attack.  Wales too had their heroes, Stephen Jones was as strong as ever at fly-half, Gareth Cooper finally delivered a performance worthy of Test rugby and Andy Powell was back to his all-action best.  But Lee Byrne, full of running, tireless in defence and lethal with ball in hand wins this award.  A worthy mention to the rest of those who took part, for all played their part.

Moment of the Match:  With twenty minutes still to play Australia were pressing hard for a decisive score, with Wales hanging on for dear life.  As the phases mounted so did the pressure on Wales, until somehow Martyn Williams won a vital turnover that was greeted with a roar as if Wales had just won the game.

Villain of the Match:  Plenty of tension but nothing that detracted from this classic game of rugby.

The Scorers:

For Wales:
Tries:  S.Williams, Byrne
Con:  S.Jones
Pens:  S.Jones 2
Drop goal:  S.Jones

For Australia:
Tries:  Chisholm, Ioane
Con:  Giteau
Pen:  Giteau
Drop goal:  Giteau

Yellow card:  Moore (Australia -- 28th minute;  deliberate killing of the ball)

The teams:

Wales:  15 Lee Byrne, 14 Mark Jones, 13 Tom Shanklin, 12 Jamie Roberts, 11 Shane Williams, 10 Stephen Jones, 9 Gareth Cooper, 8 Andy Powell, 7 Martyn Williams, 6 Ryan Jones (c), 5 Alun-Wyn Jones, 4 Ian Gough, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Gethin Jenkins.
Replacements:  16 Richard Hibbard, 17 John Yapp, 18 Luke Charteris, 19 Dafydd Jones, 20 Martin Roberts, 21 James Hook, 22 Andrew Bishop.

Australia:  15 Drew Mitchell, 14 Peter Hynes, 13 Ryan Cross, 12 Stirling Mortlock (c), 11 Digby Ioane, 10 Matt Giteau, 9 Luke Burgess, 8 Richard Brown, 7 Phil Waugh, 6 Hugh McMeniman, 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 Mark Chisholm, 3 Al Baxter, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements:  16 Adam Freier, 17 Matt Dunning, 18 Dean Mumm, 19 George Smith, 20 Sam Cordingley, 21 Quade Cooper, 22 Lote Tuqiri/Adam Ashley-Cooper.

Referee:  Alan Lewis (Ireland)
Touch judges:  Dave Pearson (England), Romain Poite (France)
Television match official:  Peter Allan (Scotland)
Assessor:  Michel Lamoulie (France)

Wallabies outstrip Wales in Brisbane

In a dour game that highlighted the mismatches of all the Tests of the weekend, Australia proved too much for a fighting but weak Welsh side, downing them 31-0 to claim the James Bevan Trophy in Brisbane on Saturday.

Wales were out to avenge last weekend's last-minute defeat to Australia were they threw away a 17-point lead and allowed Stephen Hoiles to snatch victory for the Wallabies with the last move of the match.

Australia, for their part, vowed to shake free the rust that had weighed them down in Sydney.

Well, a win's a win and this one was quite comfortable, but nothing on display at the Suncorp Stadium could be described as polished steel.

Perhaps we expected too much from this match.  The drama in Sydney stood out like a brilliant beacon amid the mire of mediocre mid-year "Test" matches, and Brisbanites were expecting a fitting sequel.

What they witnessed was a negative, listless performance from both sides -- a game more suited to a pre-season selectorial joust best played behind closed doors.

The crowd let their feelings be known as the Wallabies trooped off at half-time, booing in protest of the poxy 6-0 scoreline.

The crowd's disdain, a veritable barbecuing during the interval and the introduction of the evergreen George Gregan all led to a marked improvement from the Wallabies in the second half.

Suddenly the gaps began to open up and the use of turnover possession became more instinctive.

It seem to dawn on the Australians that their speedster had the edge on their counterparts and unanswered tries from Digby Ioane, Drew Mitchell and Julian Huxley duly followed.

Welsh misery was compounded by the sight of Chris Czekaj and Jamie Robinson being carried from the pitch in obvious agony, the latter with a serious injury that could see him miss the forthcoming Rugby World Cup.

A tentative start was punctuated when Stephen Larkham ushered Nathan Sharpe through a gap in midfield.  The big lock kept the ball alive, and although Stirling Mortlock ran out of turf, the Wallabies suddenly looked alive.

The attack tweaked Welsh nerves and they coughed up a penalty for a collapsed a scrum in the shadow of their posts.  Mortlock struck the place-kick sweetly to draw first blood after 12 minutes.

Wales should have responded in kind through James Hook two minutes later, but his attempt drifted wide from 35 metres and in front of the posts.  The visitors then blew another chance as Jones delayed a pass to Czekaj.

After 19 minutes Wales again found themselves waiting and watching as Mortlock lined up a shot at goal, this time after the visitors fell offside just outside their 22 and the centre did his captain's job by hitting the target.

Six minutes later the night went from bad to worse for Wales and Czekaj in particular as a tackle by hooker Stephen Moore ended with the Cardiff Blues wing appearing to suffer a dislocated kneecap, much to the horror of the crowd as the moment was replayed on the big screens.

After Robinson also departed injured in the 35th minute, Ceri Sweeney came on and the reshuffled back division had Henson at full-back, skipper Gareth Thomas on the wing and Hook at inside centre to accommodate the Dragons fly-half.

As half-time approached, referee Paul Honiss brought the rival skippers together and expressed his frustration, telling them to buck their ideas up because up to that point, "it was all negative".

No-one could argue with that assessment on a Test match that had largely been a skill-free zone in the opening half and the crowd clearly agreed as they booed the teams off at the break.

The Wallabies introduced Gregan at the restart and with the benefit of a dominant scrum, the hosts began to show their true colours.

First Sharpe and Huxley combined to send Digby Ioane racing away for his debut try four minutes into the second period and while Mortlock could not convert, his penalty 13 minutes later after Nathan Brew's high tackle on Matt Giteau, who had moved to centre, provided the cushion his side needed to let rip.

As the shackles came off, Mitchell showed his paces to round Michael Owen and dash 50 yards to the line and despite some brave efforts in attack from the visitors, they were unable to match the Wallabies' new-found zip and zest.

Huxley proved his value to the cause by copying Mike Phillips's chip-and-chase example.  Except that in the Wallaby full-back's case it paid off in spectacular fashion as he gathered to claim a superb solo score.

Mortlock converted Mitchell and Huxley's touchdowns to take his side 31-0 ahead with 16 minutes remaining and that is how it remained as Wales suffered a 2-0 Test series defeat.

Man of the match:  James Hook's star continues to rise, he was the only Welshman who looked capable of shaking the Wallabies during the second half.  A number of Wallabies shone in the final stages -- all feeding off the magnificence of George Gregan.  Stirling Mortlock was his usual busy self, and Drew Mitchell roused the crowd from their slumber on a number of occasions.  But our award goes to the tireless Wycliff Palu who put the Welsh on the backfoot and kept Australia's attacks ticking over by resuscitating moribund move after moribund move

Moment of the match:  Surely the introduction of George Gregan.  Try as they might to plan for life without him, the Wallabies are beginning to learn that he is utterly irreplaceable.

Villain of the match:  All good clean (if slightly boring) fun, no award.

The scorers:

For Australia:
Tries:  Ioane, Mitchell, Huxley
Cons:  Mortlock 2
Pens:  Mortlock 4

For Wales:
Tries:
Cons:
Pens:

Australia:  15 Julian Huxley, 14 Digby Ioane, 13 Stirling Mortlock (c), 12 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Stephen Larkham, 9 Matt Giteau, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 George Smith, 6 Rocky Elsom, 5 Dan Vickerman, 4 Nathan Sharpe, 3 Guy Shepherdson, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements:  16 Adam Freier, 17 Matt Dunning, 18 Mark Chisholm, 19 Stephen Hoiles, 20 Phil Waugh, 21 George Gregan, 22 Mark Gerrard

Wales:  15 Gareth Thomas (c), 14 Chris Czekaj, 13 Jamie Robinson, 12 Sonny Parker, 11 Aled Brew, 10 James Hook, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Jonathan Thomas, 7 Gavin Thomas, 6 Colin Charvis, 5 Rob Sidoli, 4 Michael Owen, 3 Ceri Jones, 2 Mefin Davies, 1 Iestyn Thomas.
Replacements:  16 Chris Horsman, 17 Richard Hibbard, 18 Scott Morgan, 19 Robin Sowden-Taylor, 20 Andy Williams, 21 Ceri Sweeney, 22 Gavin Henson.

Referee:  Paul Honiss (New Zealand)
Touch judges:  Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa), Mark Lawrence (South Africa)
Television match official:  Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand)

Tired Welsh let Australia off the hook

A last-gasp try from Stephen Hoiles helped Australia bounce back from an early 17-0 deficit to beat Wales as anticipated on Saturday, but John Connolly's new-look team made life mighty hard for themselves in the 29-23 win.

A less weary team than the Welsh would not have let Australia off though, and despite the win, Connolly will know that his team still has a lot to prove in the second Test next week.

What a finish!  Once again the sound of the hooter produced the biggest drama of the match -- a match that nearly produced an upset of exalting proportions for the Welsh and humiliating proportions for the Wallabies.

It nearly was the greatest Welsh victory in the Southern Hemisphere since Rorke's Drift.  Written off and vilified since their arrival in Australia they stood up manfully and justified their existence and worthiness as international players.

When time was up the Welsh led.  When the final whistle went the Wallabies had won.  It was shattering.

The Welsh were defending like that Welch Regiment of old:  manful, shoulder to shoulder, Men of Harlech in their throats.  That day they won 11 VCs as the Zulus, exultant after victory at Islandhwana, flung themselves at the little garrison behind the biscuit tins.  On this day, too, they found new energy and resolve to keep the Wallabies back in their own territory.  With a little over a minute to play they led 23-22 and had a scrum in the Welsh half.

Jonathan Thomas played to replacement scrumhalf Gareth Cooper who grubbered down into the Wallaby 22.  Julien Huxley fielded the ball and hoofed it low and hard and far.  It rolled down into the Welsh 22 where Griffiths fielded it and kicked for touch, a poor clearing kick.  The line-out was on the Wallaby left.  They won it and went far right, as the hooter went to herald the end of the match.  The Wallabies came back far left with inroads made by Matt Giteau and, tellingly, by Rocky Elsom.  When they went far right Sam Norton-Knight threw a long, left-handed skip pass and there was replacement loose forward Stephen Hoiles to surge over in the corner for the try that won the match for the Wallabies.

At Rorke's Drift, one of the 11 VCs was Alfred Hook.  At Telstra Stadium one of the 22 VCs was going to be James Hook, till that try on 80 minutes 26 seconds.

What, of course, this did was earn great credit for Wales and its rugby and sound a warning alarm to the South Hemisphere countries as they prepare to welcome lambs to the slaughter.  These Welsh were not lambs.

The first half suggested that the Wallabies were going to win easily, except that the Welsh were the ones scoring the points -- against the run of play but a heap of points.  Before 20 minutes were played Wales led 17-0.  The unthinkable looked possible.

At that stage the Wallabies were rejoicing in a cornucopia of possession, but they managed to turn it into Welsh tries as their hands let them down.  It was significant that two left-hand passes by Norton-Knight helped in the scoring of Hoiles's try because it was left-handed passing that led to the two Welsh tries.

A clever kick by Drew Mitchell had settled the Wallabies into comfortable attack down on their left but then they came right and novice Norton-Knight threw a difficult -- difficult not impossible -- pass to Stirling Mortlock.  It fell on the ground and Welsh left wing Chris Czekaj snapped it up and started running down the field.  Wallabies closed in and he kicked ahead.  Giteau could not control the ball.  Hook snapped it up, weighed up his options and gave to captain Gareth Thomas who went over and eventually, helped by Gavin Thomas, scored his 38th Test try, breaking his own record in his record-breaking 93rd Test.  Hook converted.  That was some two minutes into the match.

The crowd of 40,872 settled back to watch the Wallabies attack.  Mortlock hit the upright with a kickable penalty and their handling helped the Welsh to keep them at bay.  But all the signs were that those seven points had been an aberration and the Wallabies were settling into winning.  Norton-Knight through his third awkward left-hander and then Julien Huxley, up in the line, threw another, a long one in search of an overlap.  It did not get to the overlap, for Jamie Robinson plucked it out of the air and set off downfield.  Mitchell got close but Robinson stretched away from him in his 70-metre run to the posts.  Again Hook converted.  14-0 after 15 minutes.

The Wallabies went on attacking but lost the ball in a turn-over.  Lee Byrne took an inside pass from Jonathan Thomas and raced down the middle of the field.  Mark Gerrard caught him but a penalty enabled Hook to make it 17-0 after 19 minutes.

Now it was uncomfortable for Wallaby supporters and now the Wallabies changed tack.  No longer were they playing it wide.  Now it was time for pick-n-drive.  The Welsh contingent tackled.  The Wallabies reached 13 phases and then Wycliff Palu, their main batterer, took a flipped pass from Matt Dunning and forced his way over in the right corner.  17-5 after 24 minutes.

The Wallaby camp left out some relieved breath.

Mitchell grubbered and chased and forced Byrne to run the ball out for a five-metre line-out to Australia.  The line-out was a mess but it produced a try.  Perhaps the mess disjointed the Welsh, but there was Nathan Sharpe bursting inside Robert Sidoli to score.  Mortlock converted.  17-12.

Wales had their best concerted effort just after that when they ran from a line-out and Sonny Parker got a clever pass away in the half-gap but Wales yielded a turn-over and Huxley hoofed many metres downfield.

There was drama but also a lot of untidy play.  The handling was shaky and we were back in the land of the messy scrums with resets, collapses and free kicks.  Even when the ball managed to find a way out there was a mess.

After Huxley had misjudged a rolling kick and conceded a line-out five metres from his line, the Welsh had a promising attack.  In fact their backs looked more likely to produce try-scoring breaks than the Wallabies did.  The Wallabies relied on extra men, the Welsh on straightening and stepping.  The Wallabies also had Giteau at scrum-half, a great footballer but guzzling space.

From a scrum the Welsh went wide and bashed at the Wallaby line.  Gerrard was offside and Hook made the score 20-12 after 51 minutes.

The Wallabies attacked but there was nobody to clear at the tackle/ruck.  Wales picked up but then threw the ball away.  Giteau dived on it and the Wallabies were off attacking on their left where Giteau threw a dummy towards Palu and ran round behind the posts.  20-19, and the Wallabies were back on the attack.  A penalty at a breakdown enabled Mortlock to put the Wallabies into the lead for the first time in the match, 22-20 after 61 minutes.

There were 19 minutes still to play.

From the kick-off after the penalty Wales got possession and attacked through many phases till Gareth Thomas tried a high diagonal towards the right and the Wallabies survived.  Soon afterwards they yielded a penalty in front of their posts but Hook's kick hit the upright and stayed out.

There was a loud cheer in Telstra Stadium when George Gregan came on after 65 minutes.  Giteau went to inside centre in the place of Adam Ashley-Cooper.

With eight minutes to play, from a scrum following the grossest of knock-ons by Gerrard, Hook sat back in a pocket and dropped a goal.  Wales were ahead 23-22, where they stayed till that last dramatic minute or so.

Man of the Match:  Probably the player who played most rugby was Matt Giteau.

Villain of the Match:  There was none.

Moment of the Match:  The final try by Stephen Hoiles.

The scorers:

For Australia:
Tries:  Palu, Sharpe, Giteau, Hoiles
Cons:  Mortlock 3
Pen:  Mortlock

For Wales:
Tries:  Gavin Thomas, Robinson
Cons:  Hook 2
Pens:  Hook 2
Drop goal:  Hook

The Teams:

Australia:  15 Julian Huxley, 14 Mark Gerrard, 13 Stirling Mortlock (vice-captain), 12 Adam Ashley-Cooper, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Sam Norton-Knight, 9 Matt Giteau, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 Phil Waugh (c), 6 Rocky Elsom, 5 Mark Chisholm, 4 Nathan Sharpe, 3 Guy Shepherdson, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Matt Dunning.
Replacements:  16 Adam Freier, 17 Benn Robinson, 18 Dan Vickerman, 19 Stephen Hoiles, 20 George Smith (vice-captain), 21 George Gregan, 22 Scott Staniforth.

Wales:  15 Lee Byrne, 14 Gareth Thomas (c), 13 Jamie Robinson, 12 Sonny Parker, 11 Chris Czekaj, 10 James Hook, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Jonathan Thomas, 7 Gavin Thomas, 6 Colin Charvis, 5 Rob Sidoli, 4 Brent Cockbain, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Iestyn Thomas
Replacement:  16 Richard Hibbard, 17 Ceri Jones, 18 Michael Owen, 19 Scott Morgan, 20 Gareth Cooper, 21 Ceri Sweeney, 22 Gavin Henson

Referee:  Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Touch judges:  Paul Honiss (New Zealand), Mark Lawrence (South Africa)