Key events
Here’s the full match report from Dublin
A fair result in the end when you consider the game as a whole. Ireland had enough quality, especially with the halfback replacements, to give them the extra percentages in performance to win a tight game. Make no mistake, though, there’s quite a bit to improve for Simon Easterby in Farrell’s Lions absence.
Australia were better than last week, with the back row particularly strong; there was also more evidence of their structured gameplan in their own territory and impressive defence throughout. It will be interesting to see where they get to in the next twelve months.
FULL TIME! IRELAND WIN IN DUBLIN!
80 mins. Zero chance of that finish, as the ball is won back by Ireland to win the match.
79 mins. Wallabies are on the ball just inside the Ireland half. What price a Twickenham Mk 2 finish?
78 mins. An important lineout steal has Australia back on the ball, but this is ruined by Suaali’i’s inability to not tip the ball on when it comes his way as his slap on goes straight to Ringrose. His unique daring can be disruptive to a defence, but it was never on there and it was stupid to try it. It’s fortunate that Ireland then knock it on themselves around halfway.
76 mins. Frustration for the visitors as a poor pass from McReight causes Tom Wright to drop the ball forward. How important will that be in a few minutes?
75 mins. There’s a lot of lummoxing by both sides at the restart and the ball pings about, but it was an Irish hand that knocked it on first which will give the Wallabies possession in the Ireland half.
TRY! Ireland 22 – 19 Australia (Gus McCarthy)
73 mins. Another Irish lineout close to the line and this time there’s no mistake made as they go to the tail and sub Gus McCarthy flops over to score.
Crowley adds the two.
Ireland ahead with minutes left.
71 mins. The Ireland pack catch and drive the lineout and heave towards the tryline, but as they topple over it the ball is held up to give a goal-line drop out to Australia. More strong defence from the Wallabies.
70 mins. An Australian hand has a few too many slaps at the ball on the floor and invites Ref Piardi to ping the visitors. Crowley puts the ball in the corner and Ireland will have a lineout not far from the line.
68 mins. There’s already a bit more zip in the Irish attack with Casey busier at the base of the ruck. The ball is kicked wide to Hansen but the Wallaby defence crowds him into touch.
66 mins. Cian Healy is on to a cacophonous ovation as he breaks the record for Irish caps.
Ireland have also changed their half-backs, Craig Casey and Jack Crowley on for Gibson-Park and Prendergast.
65 mins. Add a malfunctioning lineout to the list of things Ireland are dealing with as the latest on the Aus 10 metre line is mangled and stolen. The ball is flung left by the visitors but there’s nothing doing and the ball is kicked away.
PENALTY! Ireland 15 – 19 Australia (Noah Lolesio)
62 mins. Poor discipline and a troubled attack is not a great cocktail for Ireland. Lolesio is delighted with the former, however, and hammers a kick over from 45 metres out after the home side are clumsy at the breakdown.
60 mins. They may very well win this game eventually, but Ireland’s attack is a bit of a lumpen mess at the minute; all pedestrian passing and no-one really hitting the line at pace. The latest has Prendergast running out of options and putting a nothing kick up for Lolesio to mark, then the next ends with another kick from the Irish youngster, this one much better but Lolesio just about manages to mark it under intense pressure.
58 mins. Ireland have a lot of ball in the Australian half and it’s again tidy enough without having any real penetration which eventually forces Prendergast into a cross-kick, this time to Hansen. There’s a few more phases before it peters out.
PENALTY! Ireland 15 – 16 Australia (Noah Lolesio)
54 mins. There are some meaningful phases from the visitors and just as in the first half minimal territory gleans consistent points, this time after Doris is penalised in the ruck.
52 mins. Australia look to have a decent platform in the Ireland half after possession at the scrum, but the creeping issues of not being able to secure the ball at the breakdown has them losing it. The home side try to run it clear but have some breakdown issues of their own and give possession back to the Wallabies.
TRY! Ireland 15 – 13 Australia (Caelan Doris)
50 mins. Prendergast finds the corner with the penalty, the ball is won and three phases later the Ireland captain is crashing over the line under the posts.
The conversion is good and Ireland are ahead for the first time!
48 mins. Lots of Ireland phases off the lineout, but Australia are putting no-one into the the ruck and fanning out to cover the attacking patterns the home side are running. This is doing the job of slowing the forward motion, but there is some poor discipline in the tackle again from the Wallabies.
46 mins. Prendergast bunts a low cross-kick to Lowe who is running free, but his lack of pace means he can’t get away from the cover as he heads into the 22. A few phases of again impressive gold defence eventually dislodges the ball and Gordon can boot it clear to touch.
45 mins. Australia looks tidy as they move the ball through hands, but it’s a little too laboured and very well read by Hansen who shoots up in the 13 channel to disrupt Ikitau, drive the possession backwards and win it back for Ireland in the Wallaby half.
PENALTY! Ireland 8 – 13 Australia (Sam Prendergast)
42 mins. The home side have the first meaningful set of phases of the half, with Prendergast busily bringing runners on in the Australia half. The pressure on the Wallaby defence tells as McReight infringes at the breakdown, awarding a penalty that Prendergast slots from 35 metres.
Second Half!
We’re back in play via a deep Lolesio kick.
This is an odd scoreline so far as Ireland look the better team in all the traditional measures; with 51% of the first half being played in the Australian 22 and their superiority in the scrum two examples of the home side’s relative dominance. But it’s the Wallabies’ superior cutting edge and energetic defending, alloyed with Ireland coughing up the ball through handling errors, that has them eight points up.
Logic dictates that Ireland will pull themselves back into this, but Australia have defied logic on this tour a few times and it may not be beyond them here, either.
Half time! Ireland 5 – 13 Australia
40 mins. Ireland can do nothing with it other than a few phases up the left that eventually allows the Wallaby defence to bundle Lowe into touch.
39 mins. The ball is fumbled by Australia and at the resulting scrum the gold pack crumples like an egg box to give a penalty to Ireland. The home side win possession from the lineout in Aus territory.
38 mins. Clock was off for a bit while there was another Law & Order style investigation by the TMO, this time for Bealham falling into Kellaway’s legs after he’d kicked the ball. Ref Piardi decides it’s only a penalty, meaning Australia will have possession where the ball landed back in the Ireland half.
37 mins. Ireland’s 5m lineout is a mess and is stolen then worked to Wright to punt it clear.
35 mins. Tadhg Beirne wins an impressive turnover by hammering a dithering Gordon at back of ruck, which allows Prendergast to boom the ball into touch close to the Wallaby line after the visitors are off their feet at the ruck.
PENALTY! Ireland 5 – 13 Australia (Noah Lolesio)
33 mins. After that insane few minutes, Lolesio decides to reduce the nonsense quotient by 95% and kicks three points.
32 mins. The greatest sight in rugby occurs as an intercept by Tupou sets the prop running into open pasture for 25 metres before Prendergast reels him in and catches him. Suaali’i was screaming for it on the left but Tupou was clearly not interested in a pass of that length on the run and opted instead to throw it backwards over his head without looking!
Prendergast nicks it, but Ireland were then offside at the ruck.
30 mins. Australia read what I last posted and decided I needed putting in my place as a short pass to McReight on the angle set the backrow running free into the Ireland half. The ball is recycled but the pace is lost which allows the home side to scramble and frustrate the attack.
29 mins. Fraser McReight clamps on a ball at the breakdown in the 22 after Ireland have some busy passing and offloading phases from the home side. The second quarter has so far been Ireland’s and even though that attack was thwarted there feels an inevitability about the men in green scoring again soon.
26 mins. Ireland continue to grind their way back into this game, this time with a quick tap from the scrum free kick award. Prendergast executes a nostalgic Sextonesque runaround to feed Hansen but the gold defence cover it well before the ball comes all the way back to Lowe on the left who throws a forced pass into touch.
TRY! Ireland 5 – 10 Australia (Josh Van Der Flier)
23 mins. Prendergast fires it into the corner and from the lineout Ireland pile into the Australian five metre zone. It’s big carry after bigger carry before Van Der Flier forces over to open the Irish account.
Prendergast pulls the conversion wide.
21 mins. Rob Valentini is in trouble as he fumbles a kick-off backwards and as he turns and runs he lifts his forearm into the throat area of the chasing Hansen. The TMO wants the ref to have a look, and he decides the contact was more on the body than the neck so penalty only.
At least Ref Piardi is equally applying his lenient decisions so far….
TRY! Ireland 0 – 10 Australia (Max Jorgensen)
19 mins. The ball is back with Australia allowing Lolesio to boot the ball high for the flying menace Suaalii to win it back in the Ireland 22; he’s a total nightmare for any defence in that situation. The ball is worked right where a great tackle by Prendergast stops Kellaway near the line, but the Wallabies work it all the way left through hands for Jorgensen to dive over in the corner.
Loleso slots a great conversion from out wide.
17 mins. Australia are getting the ball moving through their hands in the Irish half. There are a few glimpses of breaking the green tackle line, but none are fully realised before the ball is kicked away.
14 mins. A tidy first phase pattern from Ireland nearly does enough to bust the Aussie line, but it eventually loses momentum which is a cue for the always thinking Gibson-Park to drive an angled kick bouncing into touch deep in Wallaby territory. Superb tactical stuff from the scrum-half.
12 mins. A Bealham knock-on, his second of the game under no pressure, halts another Ireland attack and the ball is cleared after Gordon digs it out of a retreating gold scrum. It’s early days, but the Wallaby set-piece is already creaking.
PENALTY! Ireland 0 – 3 Australia (Noah Lolesio)
9 mins. While I was on my soapbox, Lolesio called for the tee and put Australia in front.
Time is off while the TMO has a look at a head-on-head after Joe McCarthy went in high on Valetini. Ref Piardi takes a look and says it was low level of danger and penalty only.
This appears mainly due to the fact McCarthy went backwards after hitting Valetini, so essentially it’s not a card because the Irish lock isn’t strong enough, ignoring the fact his tackle technique was always going down-to-up and that is what the protocols are meant to discourage.
8 mins. Valetini flies through the lineout to yoink the ball away before the tap down from Ryan can reach Gibson-Park; a magnificent bit of larceny from the Australian. This puts the visitors on the attack in the Irish half
6 mins. It takes a while to complete the Irish scrum just outside the Wallaby 22, which in the end results in a free kick to the home team. The ball is tapped quickly by Gibson-Park and a tidy pass from Prendergast finds Keenan on the gallop up to the line, but Kellaway rattles the ball out in the covering tackle to deny the fullback. Knock-on, and Australia clear from the scrum.
2 mins. Australia receive the ball and set about their usual few phases of putting it through hands which results in approximately 0.25 metres being made and so Lolesio decides to punt it clear. The ball doesn’t reach touch and Ireland have a few phases of their own that come to a close after a Prendergast grubber is fumbled forward on the 22 by the covering Lolesio.
Kick Off!
Young Sam Prendergast boots us into action.
The teams are out for the anthems on a crazily balmy winter day in western Europe as temperatures hover around 15 degress celcius. Should make for a decent spectacle as it always helps when you can feel your hands when playing.
Much chat about Cian Healy in the build up on the occasion of him breaking the all-time caps record for Ireland, moving to 134, one clear of Brian O’Driscoll’s previous total. That number of appearances of this level is impressive enough without having to do it as a prop.
Pre match reading
You can get in touch with me up to and throughout the game via email, where I am happy to receive all correspondence on any subject.
Teams
Andy Farrell makes the bold and in some quarters rage inducing selection of Sam Prendergast at out-half ahead of recent incumbent, Jack Crowley.
For Australia, Joseph Suaali’i starts after his wrist injury turned out not to be a serious as feared. In the forwards, James Slipper and Taniela return as the starting props.
Ireland: Hugo Keenan; Mack Hansen, Robbie Henshaw, Bundee Aki; James Lowe; Sam Prendergast, Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Rónan Kelleher, Finlay Bealham; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan; Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris (capt).
Replacements: Gus McCarthy, Cian Healy, Tom O’Toole, Iain Henderson, Peter O’Mahony, Craig Casey, Jack Crowley, Garry Ringrose.
Australia: Tom Wright; Andrew Kellaway, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, Len Ikitau, Max Jorgensen; Noah Lolesio, Jake Gordon; James Slipper, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Taniela Tupou, Nick Frost, Jeremy Williams; Rob Valetini, Fraser McReight, Harry Wilson (capt)
Replacements: Billy Pollard, Angus Bell, Allan Alaalatoa, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Langi Gleeson, Tate McDermott, Tane Edmed, Harry Potter.
Preamble
Welcome the final chapter of the Autumn Internationals series as Ireland take on Australia in Dublin.
It’s often a mixed bag of emotions meeting up with your old boss, so this must be strange day for Andy Farrell. Sure, he learned quite a bit from Joe Schmidt (patterns, dear boy) and admired his leadership, but there was also the nagging feeling that he wanted the Kiwi to sod off because the northerner quite fancied the big chair for himself. Then he dismantled some of Schmidt’s previous work – the Ireland career of now World Cup winning lock Jean Kleyn , for example – and took the team to new heights. All of this will be just below the surface when Farrell offers an awkward “alreet, Joe?” prior to kick-off for this match between two teams at adjacent points on the team development bell curve.
Australia arrive after a chastening, reality chomping defeat in Edinburgh with the knowledge that this is all work in progress as they look to push the boulder up the gradient of continuous improvement. Progress picked up pace early in the month, today is a chance to gather some more before their season ends.
Ireland remain in a strange place where reality and vibes are making a clanging, dissonant noise when brought together, like a decent day out soundtracked by any form of jazz ad thus ruined. The reality is that they have lost one game at home in the past 22 outings, are Six Nations champions and remain one of the best teams on the planet. The vibes could not be more different, however, as all the talk and mood dwells on an ageing squad, a difficult transition period, Munster/Leinster daggers among the fans and the head coach about to disappear on Lions duty. The squad need to put the Wallabies down in a similarly emphatic way to Scotland if the ambience is to improve two months out from the Six Nations.