A disappointing end: Where do Australia and USA go after heavy Pacific Four defeats?

At the end of the Pacific Four Series supporters of the Wallaroos’ and USA Women’s Eagles can be forgiven for feeling a little underwhelmed.

So far as tournaments go, the two teams were left in a world of their own at the foot of the table and each ended their three game stretches with heavy defeats. Compared to a year ago only the two teams’ places in the overall standings have changed.

In the final round, Australia were beaten 45-7 by Canada in Brisbane as seven different try scorers scampered across the whitewash- Wallaroos head coach Jo Yapp reacted: “There’s a lot of leanings for our game drivers to take from that game, and a lot of learnings for us as coaches as well”, whilst in New Zealand the Eagles were powerless in preventing Portia Woodman-Wickliffe dotting down seven times in a 79-14 drubbing.

‘This Energy Never Stops’ – Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025

‘This Energy Never Stops’ – Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025

The unstoppable winger who recently came out of retirement said post-match: “Finishing on that note was amazing. We still know there’s a lot to work on, but really exciting for where we’re heading.”

Against one another in this year’s series Australia won the arm wrestle in Canberra 27-19 as the hosts played better on the day and put the demons of their loss to the same opposition a year prior to bed.

At full-time Eagles head coach Sione Fukofuka said that his team “need to work harder” and must be “more clinical”, while Wallaroos skipper Pesi Palu spoke of frustration at a “slow start” and the need to be more strategic.

These frustrations stretch beyond the confines of results. Both of these teams have seen investment into their programmes skyrocket in the hope of better results on the world stage.

It was in the summer of 2023 that Wallaroos players lashed out against Rugby Australia in a public statement about unequal treatment between male and female players. In that statement the group identified a number of ways that the two groups of players were separate.

This included the delay in the delivery of full-time playing contracts, Rugby Australia’s statement that there was not enough money before splashing $5m Australian Dollars on Joseph Sua’ali’i and the number of assistant coaches Eddie Jones was taking to the 2023 Rugby World Cup while their head coach, Jay Tregonning, remained part-time.

Just a few months later Rugby Australia had named Jo Yapp as their first-ever full-time coach and the union had secured long-term investment with a key Cadbury sponsorship deal.

As of the start of last year, there were 45 players contracted across three tiers and players contracted at the highest tier earning up to $72,458 as part of a 60% rise in investment in the year prior.

Despite Australia finishing bottom of the standings in the 2024 Pacific Four Series, the Wallaroos picked up a full complement of points at WXV 2 last year with impressive displays against Wales, South Africa and Scotland.

That all contributed to a best-ever year’s action for the team as they won four matches for the first time.

From an Eagles perspective, to help their programme turn the corner and compete at the top level again, the USA turned to Fukofuka.

With extensive experience in the establishment of a high performance environment while working for the Wallaroos, Fukofuka’s three wins and a draw in his first year in charge was the team’s best year since 2013.

Ahead of their heavy defeat to the Black Ferns it was confirmed that the Women’s Eagles had received full-time contracts. These six-month deals will take 38 of the players through the Rugby World Cup period and mark USA Rugby’s first step to contracting their players long-term.

Progress is rarely linear. It is one of those things spoken about, hypothesised and lauded so much, then as soon as the cogs begin to whirr you want all the pieces to fall into place all at once.

Just because Rugby Australia and USA Rugby have opened the coffers, it does not mean that results will quickly follow or that money is a one stage cure-all for any ailment.

Since the introductions of their own full-time contracts in 2022, Wales and Scotland have experienced differing results.

When contrasted to the successes of the Red Roses, Black Ferns and even France, it is a stark reminder of just how far the pair still have to go, while Canada have climbed to second in the World Rugby rankings despite being an amateur outfit and are thought of as genuine contenders at this year’s Rugby World Cup.

The only team to have introduced centralised contracts within this past World Cup cycle and seen relative success are Ireland. Scott Bemand’s installation as head coach saw the team win WXV 3 in 2023, finish third in back-to-back Guinness Women’s Six Nations campaigns and place second at last year’s WXV 1.

In the case of Fukofuka he is at the helm during a time of major shakeup for the women’s Eagles. Their three wins and a draw in 2024 was indicative of a mindset shift, but there is still much to be done before the team regularly contend with the world’s top players, with the side currently sitting at ninth in the World Rugby rankings.

Against New Zealand the Eagles were never truly in the fight even if Fred Tafuna did score the game’s opening try seven minutes in.

From that point onwards the USA were unable to keep up with the speed and intensity of their hosts. The New Zealanders’ ability to score at will was fruitful for them with their superior points difference handing Allan Bunting’s team this year’s Pacific Four title.

Similarly, the Canadians made light work of the Wallaroos and hardly broke a sweat across the 80 minutes.

We are now just three months away from the Rugby World Cup in England. Both grouped with the Red Roses and Samoa in Pool A, it already feels like the race for second and a quarter-final place is the main attraction.

Of course either team is capable of an upset on their day. The quality of their playing squads has never been in doubt, just the level of support available to them to contend against the best nations in the world.

Time, as it so often is, will be the main factor in determining how far these teams have come. With such comparatively short runways as professional teams, it is almost unfair to compare the USA and Australia to their more established rivals.

This year’s Rugby World Cup will not be the defining factor in either team’s journey.

Perhaps a fairer assessment can come, with the same levels of investment and support behind them, when the two nations host Rugby World Cups in the not so distant future- Australia will follow hosting the Men’s Rugby World Cup in 2027 with the Women’s in 2029, and the USA will follow the same pattern four years later in 2033.

Despite their final Pacific Four matches not going their way on the field, both sides continue to offer so much in terms of growing the game through the visibility of their star players.

Be it Ilona Maher or Charlotte Caslick, who have significant social media followings, and with the collaborative approaches of both unions to promote every match using these players and their relationships off the pitch, this provided a real highlight in demonstrating why the women’s game is so incredibly special and different from the men’s. Long may it continue.

 

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