Five things we learnt from Wallabies - England

Sat, Nov 9, 2024, 5:35 PM
Nathan Williamson
by Nathan Williamson

Australia, wake up and savour that win.

The Wallabies have produced one of their most famous victories in the last decade, silencing England with a 42-37 win after an 84th-minute Max Jorgensen try.

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It's heartbreak again for England after another tight loss but one to savour for Joe Schmidt's men as they send a message to the rest of the UK.

So what did we learn?

1. Where there's a Wallaby, there's a way

The Wallabies produced their finest performance of 2024 and their best win in years.

Winning at Allianz Stadium is something that has alluded many Australian sides and they looked destined for a similar fate when Maro Itoje scored late.

But there’s a real belief in this side, which never gave up. Past teams may have worked for a penalty or panicked but they kept calm and executed their skills under pressure.

Big credit must go to Tom Wright and Len Ikitau. The Brumbies pair kept coming up with the big moments, whether it was Wright breaking the line from his own 22 or Ikitau producing the match winning offload and break.

The winning belief has been built ever since Argentina when they kicked a penalty on the siren. This is an Australian team never out of a contest

The win also sends a message to this writing off the Wallabies next year (cc: Ben Youngs) for the British and Irish Lions tour: This team isn’t going to be easily beaten.

2. Magic Max

All the talk leading into the game surrounded a gun outside back (who we'll get to) but it's another that was the hero for the Wallabies.

Max Jorgensen's game-winning try was just reward for a 20-year-old who has gone through injury hell already in his young career.

His flashy plays are nice to see but his effort is what sets him apart. Jorgensen led the chase on multiple occasions after he came on to terrorise England's kickers and get Australia into great positioning.

The Waratah had a similar moment against Argentina earlier in the year but showed enough pace to finish off a famous win in the gold jersey.

3. Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii

World Rugby: Meet Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii.

For a guy who hasn’t played Rugby Union in years, Suaalii was at home at the home of Rugby, scooping up player of the match.

He proved unstoppable with ball in hand, always finding a way to get the offload out and keep the attack alive. His no-look pass for Tom Wright’s try was magical and flipped momentum.

Suaalii also gives the Wallabies a real threat at kickoff, forcing two mistakes from England in the first half and another to start the second half.

His defensive reads will continue to improve after four missed tackles but it was an excellent first game for the debutant, who announced himself on the world stage.

4. Magic Marcus

There's nothing more that Marcus Smith could've done to drag England to victory.

Smith is a flyhalf who can do it all, sparking the hosts with an inch-perfect chip kick to set up their first try when he spotted space at the back.

The magician then split Australia open to set up their second to show why he is one of the most damaging runners of the ball at his position. 

When the Wallabies were able to slow it down, the English were sparked by another Smith grubber, this time finding Ollie Sleightholme in the corner before the quick lineout found his winger once again.

5. Forwards feast

The Wallabies’ forward pack stood up and delivered a barnstorming performance.

Rob Valetini and Angus Bell were swatting players away with ease to grind England down in the first half and get Australia back into the contest.

Both are world-class players who delivered magnificent shifts, especially Bell going nearly 70 minutes.

Lock Jeremy Williams produced a spectacular finish that’d make any winger proud to extend the lead in the second half. There was a blade of grass in it but the workhorse got a deserved break to nab his first Test try.

If the Wallabies are to match it with the best in the North, they need this to continue.

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