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Wallaroos brace for ‘a final’ with WXV 2 title on the line against Scotland

Australia players sing the national anthem ahead of the WXV 2 2024 match between South Africa and Australia at Athlone Sports Stadium on October 05, 2024 in Cape Town, South Africa. (Photo by Johan Rynners - World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)

Coach Jo Yapp has labelled the Wallaroos’ upcoming WXV 2 clash with Scotland as “a final” as both teams go into the Test with a chance of taking out the title. Australia are in the box seat after two bonus point wins, while Scotland currently sits in second on eight points.

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Australia were beaten in their final fixture before WXV 2 by Wales, but they had a chance to claim some revenge a week later against the same foe in Cape Town. It was a very different story the second time around with the Wallaroos racing away for a 37-5 win at DHL Stadium.

It was a phenomenal start to the tournament for the women in gold, and they backed that up with another clinical win against the host nation. Men’s captain Siya Kolisi watched on at Athlone Stadium as the Wallaroos beat the Springbok Women 33-26.

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While the WXV 2 title isn’t necessarily everything for the Wallaroos as they continue to build ahead of next year’s Rugby World Cup in England, it would be a way for the Aussies to claim some history-making recognition for the growth they’ve shown as a unit.

“It’s a great opportunity for us,” coach Jo Yapp told reporters earlier this week.  “We’re ultimately in a final and they don’t come around very often.

“To see how the girls respond and take that challenge on is an exciting one.”

The Wallaroos have had to endure a lot of hardships and tough lessons this year on their way to a WXV 2 decider in South Africa. Following Yapp’s appointment in February, Australia went on to lose their first three Tests under the new head coach.

Australia failed to pick up a win in three challenging Tests during World Rugby’s Pacific Four Series, but they bounced back with a commanding 64-5 demolition of Fiji in Sydney – winger Desiree Miller stealing the show that afternoon with a four-try haul.

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That ended up being the Wallaroos’ only win ahead of WXV 2, but they’ve since won their last two Tests on the bounce. For coach Yapp, who is a former captain of the England women’s side, “It’s been a whirlwind” since taking over the Australia job.

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“Back and forth initially, and then Pac Four and obviously the other New Zealand Test matches and things and then the family came out in July,” Yapp explained.

“It’s been incredible and the kind of players and staff in Australia have been super supportive of me and my family with the move.”

But, from a players’ point of view, the 2024 international season with numerous opportunities to test themselves against some of the world’s leading rugby talent. It’s been quite rare for them to play South Africa, and the Wallaroos have only ever played Scotland on three occasions.

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But with WXV 2 pitting them up against Wales, South Africa and Scotland, this tournament has proved to be a successful opportunity for the Aussies to grow their game ahead of the upcoming Rugby World Cup – which they’re expected to qualify for.

“Just playing against different opposition has been really exciting for the group.

“I don’t think anyone in this group had played against South Africa before, for example; playing against the Northern Hemisphere teams.

“So, just playing different opposition as opposed to so often playing New Zealand and Fiji, and we know how they play and we know where we stand against those at the moment.

“To see where we stand from a world perspective, and to take on these teams has been really important. Just having to adapt our styles slightly depending on who we’re playing… being able to adapt between those games leading into a World Cup is really good prep.”

Women’s Rugby World Cup England 2025 tickets application phase is now open! Apply now.

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1 Comment
B
BM 39 days ago

Great win over SCOTLAND AUSSIES TO WIN WXV 2 FULLY DESERVED!!! from a Kiwi Fan!

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J
JW 2 hours ago
'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Ok, managed to read the full article..

... New Zealand’s has only 14 and the professional season is all over within four months. In France, club governance is the responsibility of an independent organisation [the Ligue Nationale de Rugby or LNR] which is entirely separate from the host union [the Fédération Française de Rugby or FFR]. Down south New Zealand Rugby runs the provincial and the national game.

That is the National Provincial Championship, a competition of 14 representative union based teams run through the SH international window and only semi professional (paid only during it's running). It is run by NZR and goes for two and a half months.


Super Rugby is a competition involving 12 fully professional teams, of which 5 are of New Zealand eligibility, and another joint administered team of Pacific Island eligibility, with NZR involvement. It was a 18 week competition this year, so involved (randomly chosen I believe) extra return fixtures (2 or 3 home and away derbys), and is run by Super Rugby Pacific's own independent Board (or organisation). The teams may or may not be independently run and owned (note, this does not necessarily mean what you think of as 'privately owned').


LNR was setup by FFR and the French Government to administer the professional game in France. In New Zealand, the Players Association and Super Rugby franchises agreed last month to not setup their own governance structure for professional rugby and re-aligned themselves with New Zealand Rugby. They had been proposing to do something like the English model, I'm not sure how closely that would have been aligned to the French system but it did not sound like it would have French union executive representation on it like the LNR does.

In the shaky isles the professional pyramid tapers to a point with the almighty All Blacks. In France the feeling for country is no more important than the sense of fierce local identity spawned at myriad clubs concentrated in the southwest. Progress is achieved by a nonchalant shrug and the wide sweep of nuanced negotiation, rather than driven from the top by a single intense focus.

Yes, it is pretty much a 'representative' selection system at every level, but these union's are having to fight for their existence against the regime that is NZR, and are currently going through their own battle, just as France has recently as I understand it. A single focus, ala the French game, might not be the best outcome for rugby as a whole.


For pure theatre, it is a wonderful article so far. I prefer 'Ntamack New Zealand 2022' though.

The young Crusader still struggles to solve the puzzle posed by the shorter, more compact tight-heads at this level but he had no problem at all with Colombe.

It was interesting to listen to Manny during an interview on Maul or Nothing, he citied that after a bit of banter with the All Black's he no longer wanted one of their jersey's after the game. One of those talks was an eye to eye chat with Tamaiti Williams, there appear to be nothing between the lock and prop, just a lot of give and take. I thought TW angled in and caused Taylor to pop a few times, and that NZ were lucky to be rewarded.

f you have a forward of 6ft 8ins and 145kg, and he is not at all disturbed by a dysfunctional set-piece, you are in business.

He talked about the clarity of the leadership that helped alleviate any need for anxiety at the predicaments unfolding before him. The same cannot be said for New Zealand when they had 5 minutes left to retrieve a match winning penalty, I don't believe. Did the team in black have much of a plan at any point in the game? I don't really call an autonomous 10 vehicle they had as innovative. I think Razor needs to go back to the dealer and get a new game driver on that one.

Vaa’i is no match for his power on the ground. Even in reverse, Meafou is like a tractor motoring backwards in low gear, trampling all in its path.

Vaa'i actually stops him in his tracks. He gets what could have been a dubious 'tackle' on him?

A high-level offence will often try to identify and exploit big forwards who can be slower to reload, and therefore vulnerable to two quick plays run at them consecutively.

Yes he was just standing on his haunches wasn't he? He mentioned that in the interview, saying that not only did you just get up and back into the line to find the opposition was already set and running at you they also hit harder than anything he'd experienced in the Top 14. He was referring to New Zealands ultra-physical, burst-based Super style of course, which he was more than a bit surprised about. I don't blame him for being caught out.


He still sent the obstruction back to the repair yard though!

What wouldn’t the New Zealand rugby public give to see the likes of Mauvaka and Meafou up front..

Common now Nick, don't go there! Meafou showed his Toulouse shirt and promptly got his citizenship, New Zealand can't have him, surely?!?


As I have said before with these subjects, really enjoy your enthusiasm for their contribution on the field and I'd love to see more of their shapes running out for Vern Cotter and the like styled teams.

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