By Perth witnessed a pulsating classic on Sunday as the Wallabies held off a ferocious late onslaught from the Springboks to claim a dramatic 42-38 victory at Optus Stadium.
In a Test match that swung wildly between clinical Australian enterprise and staggering South African resilience, the hosts survived being reduced to just 11 players in the dying stages to preserve coach Less Kiss’s unblemished record.
The tone for a high-octane encounter was set early. Handre Pollard opened the scoring for the visitors with a crisp 40-metre penalty in the second minute, only for Ryan Lonergan to reply instantly for Australia. South Africa soon flexed their traditional muscle, targeting the breakdown through Jan-Hendrik Wessels before unleashing a devastating rolling maul that saw hooker Johan Grobbelaar crash over for his maiden Test try.
Trailing 10-3, the Wallabies clicked into gear. Outside centre Len Ikitau delivered a masterclass in incision, slicing under the posts from a clever lineout set-piece in the 22nd minute before gathering a high ball four minutes later to grab his second and push Australia ahead 17-10.
Though Edwill van der Merwe struck back for the Boks following a sensational break by Canan Moodie, it was the hosts who landed the psychological blow on the stroke of half-time. Patient phase-play stretched the Springbok defensive line, allowing Ben Donaldson to cross out wide and hand Australia a 24-17 advantage at the interval.
Deploying a significantly revamped line-up compared to the side that triumphed over the All Blacks in Baltimore two weeks prior, the Springboks frequently battled for cohesion and coughed up uncharacteristic handling errors. The Wallabies, riding high on a five-match unbeaten run, ruthlessly capitalized.
Lonergan added two further penalties shortly after the restart, and when skipper Harry Wilson powered over from a quick tap following a breakdown penalty, followed by a brilliant breakaway try from Max Jorgensen, Australia looked home and dry at 42-17 with under twenty minutes remaining.
Then Came The Chaos.
The match turned on its head in the 69th minute when Wilson was yellow-carded for head contact on Malcolm Marx. From the mounting pressure, the referee awarded a penalty try to the Boks, compounded by a yellow card to Lonergan for cynical play. When Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii was sent to the sin bin for offside, Australia found themselves defending with a staggering 12 men.
South Africa instantly smelled blood. Replacement scrumhalf Morne van den Berg sniped over from a powerful attacking scrum, and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s conversion narrowed the gap to 42-31 with five minutes left on the clock. The drama reached a fever pitch when an apparent Australian intercept try was scratched following a bunker review that identified a high tackle in the build-up. Hunter Paisami was dispatched to the sin bin, leaving the beleaguered hosts with just 11 players on the turf.
With the numerical advantage completely skewed, veteran prop Ox Nche burrowed over for his first Test try, converted by Feinberg-Mngomezulu to pull the visitors within a nail-biting four points at 42-38.
Yet, amidst the electric tension of the Perth stadium, the miracle comeback ran out of real estate. Australia secured the crucial penalty for obstruction right off the restart, allowing Lonergan to kick the ball dead and spark scenes of exhausted jubilation. It was a performance of profound grit by the Wallabies, while the Springboks’ never-say-die attitude ensured this Test will be remembered as one of the season’s most breath-taking spectacles.
