The Wallabies looked to have broken through, delivering their most complete performance of the year to lead the All Blacks 17-3 at half-time and set up a rousing Bledisloe Cup boilover. Instead, Eddie Jones’s first win in his second era as national coach will have to wait, after New Zealand rose from the dead to snatch back the Test in the final minutes to win 23-20.
The signs of Australia’s recovery had been there last week in Melbourne as the Wallabies showed flair and courage to lead 7-5 after 25-minutes. But rugby is an 80-minute contest and, as they often do, the All Blacks ripped Australia to pieces late to eventually win 38-7 and leave Jones’s side at 0-3 this season.
This time the Wallabies started fast and did not relent. Australia were 14-0 up after eight minutes following tries to winger Marika Koroibete and Tom Hooper. And after putting the home side on their heels with their attack, they monstered them in defence to keep the All Blacks tryless at half-time and set up a first win in Dunedin in 22 years.
New Zealand coach Ian Foster had made 12 changes to the side that won the Bledisloe Cup for a record 21st time last week. But there was still 246 Tests of experience in Brodie Retallick and Sam Whitelock alone and, against a Wallabies side with just 277 between 15 starters (the most inexperienced side in 28 years), this dead rubber was alive and kicking.
The first 10 minutes was frenetic from both sides but the Wallabies edged ahead by winning the collisions and rolling upfield in waves off the back of fast hands from young halves Tate McDermott and Carter Gordon. Named Australia’s 86th Test captain this week, the 24-year-old McDermott’s decision to spurn three points and chase five signalled his intent from the get-go.
And with their first entry into the All Blacks’ red zone, McDermott went left at speed and fast hands found rolling thunder out wide. If you want a body that can move three metres through two men and touch down with millimetres to spare it’s Koroibete.
The All Blacks looked rattled and their lineout cracked under the pressure. Australia seized on it, Mark Nawaqanitawase charging into space and popping a pass inside to fullback Andrew Kellaway. He found third-Test tyro Hooper who burrowed through two defenders to score. Gordon, who nudged his sole kick astray last week, iced the conversion again to make it 14-0.
With World Cup spots up for grabs, several Wallabies were playing their best games in gold. Fraser McReight was burying bigger men in driving, dumping tackles. Jordan Petaia was ever-elusive in attack and resolute in defence. Nawaqanitawase was zipping like a firefly.
Good as they were, the Wallabies weren’t perfect. McDermott should have scored but was held up over the line after ignoring men outside. And Gordon’s superb 50-20 kick was wasted when the referee pinged Australia for huddling when they should have been forming a lineout. These errors looked forgivable at the time but they came back to haunt the men in gold.
Even so, Australia went into half-time in a Bledisloe Cup match ahead for the first time in four years.
New Zealand came out hard in the second stanza and scored first when long passes allowed debutant fullback Shaun Stevenson to cross in the corner. The All Blacks had changed tack by targeting the middle instead of tossing it to the edges. The Wallabies flinched, fumbling passes and giving away penalties and turnover ball. But they hung on.
The crowd rose behind the home side comeback and the black tide lifted with it. New Zealand landed a penalty to cut the margin to four points as Australia missed one of their own. After defending their line for most of the half, Australia lost the lead in the 62nd minute when Samipeni Finau took three defenders on his back to scrape over the paint for 20-17.
But if the All Blacks were worried, it didn’t show. With second-stringers looking to usurp the first XV and the game entering its last gasps, they shaped for the killer blow. But Will Skelton rumbled off the bench for a crucial steal when a score looked imminent. It helped the tiring Wallabies rally as finishing flyhalf Quade Cooper slotted a penalty to lock it up at 20-all.
Alas, the veteran undid all the good of that equaliser by dropping the ball cold in the 77th minute. It gave the All Blacks a scrum 40-metres out. A fateful penalty ensued and Richie Mo’unga split the sticks. The deadlock was broken and the Wallabies’ hearts with it.
Since their famous 23-15 win in 2001 under Jones, Australia had gone close before here, losing narrowly 41-33 in 2013 and 35-29 in 2017. This should have been the drought-breaker. Instead, despite improvements, a famous victory vaporised and only cold defeat remained.
Fatigue and turnovers cruelled the quest. But with the World Cup 35 days off, there’s hope.
