It was only last month I started a column with the well-worn phrase, ‘what a difference a year makes’, and here I am again.
Actually, a bit more than a year in this case. Sunday, 24 September 2023, in the southern French city of Lyon, is a date and location Australian rugby fans are unlikely to forget in a hurry; the darkest day in their Rugby World Cup history, and a result that quickly rendered the Wallabies’ campaign all but over.
Even just typing ‘Wales 40 Australia 6’ still sends chills down the spine. Clearly, the memory remains raw.
A second Ben Donaldson penalty got the Wallabies back to within a point of Wales by the 14th minute that night at the OL Stadium, but little did Australian supporters realise that 7-6 scoreline was as good as things would get.
Wales ran in two more tries and 33 unanswered points from that point including six penalties and a drop-goal from Gareth Anscombe, as all of Eddie Jones’ planning and campaigning was consigned to history. So was his tenure as Wallabies coach, as it turned out.
Fast-forward almost 14 months from that fateful day and it’s genuinely incredible to see what a difference that year really has made.
A new coach has the Wallabies playing a style that makes sense and fits the playing group, and more importantly, is not radically different to the style they played with last week, or The Rugby Championship, for that matter. It’s amazing what sticking to a plan can do for team morale and confidence.
All three of Wright, Ikitau and Lolesio are playing superb rugby at this moment, maybe even the best they’ve played in a Wallabies jersey
Australia have recorded a third win over Wales in four months and a 66-point turnaround from Lyon that was about as emphatic as it gets.
But what might be the most remarkable aspect within the Wallabies’ 2024 rebuild under Joe Schmidt is that among the names standing out – the Valetinis, Bells, McReights, Frosts and Salakaia-Lotos, and latterly the Suaaliis – it’s the presence of three backline players getting better with every outing that has given Australian fans ‘all the feels’ this international season.
Tom Wright. Len Ikitau. Noah Lolesio.
All three of them are playing superb rugby at this moment, maybe even the best they’ve played in a Wallabies jersey. All three are backed to do a particular job within the Schmidt game-plan, and are just getting on with it. And all three are shining after being left to their own devices during the World Cup last year. It’s just great to see.
There’s been one common question asked among Wallabies fans over this last week and a bit, and it’s only been asked more after Australia backed up the inspirational win over England at Twickenham with sheer domination of Wales in Cardiff:
Why on earth was Len Ikitau left out of the RWC squad?
It’s a question only one man can honestly answer, and so far, he has yet to do that. It will remain one of Australian rugby’s great mysteries until he does.
Whatever the reasoning, Ikitau has simply moved on and in turning out the performances he has against England and Wales in consecutive weeks, is making his non-selection only look more farcical by the week.
If Twickenham was all about what was quickly dubbed the ‘Flickitau’, Cardiff a week later became the ‘Stepitau’
Shifted in one spot to inside centre against England, to accommodate Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii on debut at 13, Ikitau was simply brilliant. His defensive prowess remained unaffected, despite having less time and space to make the defensive decisions needed, and he provided the perfect midfield conduit in attack between the halves and the outside backs.
His flick-pass to put Max Jorgensen away down the left edge at Twickenham for the match-winner will be part of rugby promos in Australia for years to come; it’s already done multiple laps of the social media world.
But if Twickenham was all about what was quickly dubbed the ‘Flickitau’, Cardiff a week later became the ‘Stepitau’.
Attacking the Welsh line to the right-hand upright, Lolesio called Ikitau around to the open side and set off in the face of three red jerseys, albeit a fractured line. As Lolesio drew in the middle defender, Wright was on his outside steaming through a massive gap, and could easily have had his hat-trick five minutes earlier than he did, under the posts untouched.
In the end, Lolesio found Ikitau on the outside loop, who now only had Welsh full-back Cameron Winnett in front of him.
Winnett was already committed to the inside by the time the ball got to Ikitau, effectively putting the Australian on his outside. Ikitau dummied to no-one on the outside, Winnett over-committed back out, Ikitau feigned to the inside, and the two of them engaged in a split-second battle of zig and zag, before Winnett ultimately threw his head down in defeat as Ikitau strolled around on the outside to score one of the great Wallabies tries of 2024.
Ikitau has always been able to find a camera when he scores runaway tries, and he didn’t miss this time either. In fact, after Wright blew kisses into the crowd after running in the first of his three tries, more than a few Wallabies fans wondered if the gestures might have been aimed squarely at Jones. It’s an interesting thought, but might also be a bit of a stretch.
Wright in this current vein of form is genuinely one of the most dangerous players in the game right now
Wright did get his third eventually, following up his 70-metre intercept try early in the second half with a broken play special in the 80th minute after supporting Tate McDermott’s turnover back near the Wallabies’ 22.
The Brumbies and Wallabies full-back was named the official player of the match, but like Suaalii last week, it could easily have been any of half-a-dozen team-mates. A hat-trick of tries, all run in from distance, certainly makes for a decent highlights reel, however, and Wright in this current vein of form is genuinely one of the most dangerous players in the game right now.
Amazing also what a coach’s backing can do for a player’s confidence, isn’t it? Wright has had it at the Brumbies for two full seasons and has been tearing it up at Super Rugby level ever since, and now he’s doing exactly the same for Joe Schmidt and the Wallabies.
The big improver among the three might be Lolesio, though.
Since Australia headed to the UK and Ireland for the northern Autumn, Schmidt has massaged the attacking shape into one that is playing wider. Much of the attack, the defence-beating and the line-breaking is coming out near the 15m ‘tram line’ as the Wallabies spread quick ball aimed at getting outside the blitz defence.
Central to this width has been Lolesio, who Schmidt has got playing a lot flatter and wider, and tasked simply with being the distributor for the outside channels. This pattern doesn’t need Lolesio to be the creator, it just needs him to steer the team to a position from which the creating can happen out wide.
Lolesio is playing with a confidence we’ve not seen much of at Test level…he’s enjoying the freedom to play the way the coach knows he can within the system
This is seen in the stats too, where against Wales, Lolesio threw the most passes for the Wallabies outside the scrum-halves, with Ikitau and Wright both high in the passing tally too.
But Lolesio is also picking his moments to run in this pattern, averaging nearly four metres from 11 carries in the match, with a line break and a beaten defender, a couple of offloads and the assist for Ikitau’s try.
He’s playing with a confidence we’ve not seen much of at Test level, and it’s noticeable to see opinions among Wallabies fans changing over these last few weeks too. Again, he’s enjoying the freedom to play the way the coach knows he can within the system and designed to enhance this team’s attacking capabilities.
With all this new-found confidence, it’s not surprising to see the lift in news coverage for the Wallabies back in Australia right now. Certainly, these November Tests fall in a sweet spot of the sporting calendar, where the NRL and AFL are long finished and just trying to find any headline they can, and Test cricket is yet to start.
Throw a winning Wallabies into this sporting news void, and voilà! Rugby has been filling the bulletins and back pages so much that high-ranking and thin-skinned rugby league types with their noses out of joint have resorted to begging their media and broadcast partners to tone it down a smidge.
But so they should be getting the coverage. The victories over England and Wales were the first consecutive wins outside Australia since the 2019 RWC in Japan, and outside that tournament, the first time since November 2017.
Beat Scotland this weekend, and it will be the first time since beating Wales, Scotland and France in consecutive weeks in November 2016 that the Wallabies have won three straight on foreign soil.
Scotland this weekend was always going to be, and will now definitely be, the true test for this Australian squad, and the true test of Schmidt’s methods and structures with this playing group.
Concerns about Australian competitiveness are disappearing every day, and whatever the Wallabies do over these next two weeks in Edinburgh and Dublin is entirely up to them
Their ball-carrying effectiveness, and their shape and structures in attack, is looking more Irish by the day, and that’s a very welcome development given where they sit currently.
Ikitau, Wright and Lolesio highlight the enjoyment that is present in this Wallabies camp currently, and Schmidt has the squad playing in a way that looks like they don’t have a care in the world.
Right now, the rugby world is at their feet. Concerns about Australian competitiveness are disappearing every day, and whatever the Wallabies do over these next two weeks in Edinburgh and Dublin is entirely up to them.
But it’s certainly fitting that the guys leading the charge are running so hot little more than a year after being left out in the cold.
Good to be writing about a WB team that has beaten two 6 N sides in successive weeks, Brett.
Lolesio indeed is looking very comfortable under Schmidt coaching. He must feel as confident now as he was feeling in his spell at Toulon last year. It will be interesting to see how he does against Finn Russell.
It still defies belief that these 3 guys (along with Pete Samu) were left out of the WC squad. The simple fact of not taking a proven goal-kicker meant that Jones had to eventually revert to Donaldson at 15. No offence to Donaldson but you can see the advantages of having a elusive running 15 in Wright can add to a team.
Campo talked about having a World Cup winning Australian in charge but Jones had all of that and did a huge amount of damage to Australia that Schmidt is only now reversing
Half time came at the wrong time for the Wallabies at Twickenham but it came at the perfect time in Cardiff as I was worried there was going to be a repeat of the 2nd test in Argentina; not in a margin sense but that the Wallabies would have a comfortable lead and go on to lose. Whatever Joe and co said at half time worked because the result wasn't in any doubt.
Bit of bias on my part but I thought Tom Lynagh would feature a bit more prominently but Lolesio's form has ensured that won't happen.
Laurie Fisher needs to do some work with Joseph-Aukuso Sua’ali’i on lowering his target area and using a wrapping motion when making tackles. Rugby refs are much more vigilant on this than their NRL counterparts.
This is the thing about Joe Schmidt teams. You can see and measure their improvement week after week.
Scotland will be a real test of these runaway backs. Huw Jones and Sione Tuipolotu will not give up easy metres in the midfield. Out wide theres plenty of pace and power with Van Der Merwe and Graham. Up front Zander Fagerson will be strong and the Scottish loose forwards will be like terriers after Aussie ball and will no doubt slow it down. The Wallabies will play under pressure for longer periods of this game. If they can pass this test and win then they will have proven to all that they have made significant progress that could see them compete and have a decent chance against the Lions next year. Australia are progressing fast and its great news. Nobody is saying the Lions should head to play the Boks anymore. Nobody is talking them down like they were after the Argentina drubbing. The signs are positive and the anticipation growing. This tour is already a success as it has engaged the fans and the public again. They have won more games than it was thought they would and have kept the dream alive. Joe Schmidt is in the black with a positive win record this year at 6-5. If he ends in the black it will have done something his predecessors struggled to do. Theres no doubt now that he is the right man to lead them forward. Lets see just how far they can go.
No question that eddie jones is the biggest myth of a coach in rugby... bigger even than gatland and that's saying something
E Jones is a big pretender. He attacked anyone asking questions he didn't like and acted like he knew things others couldn't. Japan will be his last gig I reckon. Good to see the belief in this Wallabies team translating to results. As others point out, still a lot of growing to do but some of these players that looked pretty average in the past are putting good performances out there and playing with more than bluff and bluster and mistakes and penalties! Scotland and Ireland will be a level up but that is what you want to test these guys with.
That's harsh on Gatland. Wales downfall was predicted a few years ago due to massive financial woes. They can't afford to invest in the regions so Welsh teams are just getting worse and worse. The worse they get the less people are interested/watch/attend and the less money comes in. They are in a death spiral that leads them to Tier 2 rugby nation.
Couldn't agree more LW but EDDIE doesn't have any conscience and Gat's should never have had one either in agreeing to go back to Wales though I secretly admire his tremendous loyalty to Wales needs! 😇 Wish I was young enough to offer! 🥲 hope someone can help them.
Nice one brett and full circle for these brumbies boys who also formed the spine of Rennie's wallabies for a chunk of his tenure. As you and others have said, I'm most happy for Noah given the ups and downs he has had over the last couple of years. I have spent alot of time telling others to be patient and to point out the good things he was doing in those earlier games this year while everyone seemed fixated on the 2-3 errors he was making. Luckily shmidt is patient and level-headed and persisted with him allowing his confidence to grow. I said from the start, I didn't care who he picked at 10 out of noah, donno and lynagh (although I thought noah deserved it on SR form), we had to stick with them and let them grow in the new system, we couldn't chop and change. As you say, to me noah is playing like Ford or Foley where his skill is in organising the play and getting the ball to the right person, at the right time, in the right part of the field rather than a quade/M smith (also quality players) who are going to create 5 linebreaks a game single handedly. What hasn't been talked about enough under schmidts tenure and in these winning games because the focus has been on the flashy tries, is that the wallabies are finally managing the game well. They are getting more 22 entries, more territory, less penalties, less turnovers etc etc. These are things the wallabies have struggled with for a long time and are finally getting right. The difference in turnovers at the ruck and lineout was a huge factor in this wales game, suaalii and his restart turnovers vs england etc...
Just reread your comment and saw you did already mention penalties🙃
Also struggling less discipline-wise. Don't know the exact penalty numbers but certainly far far fewer silly ones.
Yeah, nice comment NH.
There's a concerted focus on holding possession once the Wallabies enter the opposition half, and the quality of the ball-carrying up through the middle is creating those 22 entries - which are now being converted into points..
Ikitau was coming back from an injury v South Africa
Lolesio is the one I'm happiest about. He's been bagged all season but he's kept going and now looks at home in test rugby. He's still young and it can take a while for some players to know what to do at the highest level, especially in a decision making position.
He certainly looks comfortable in this system Schmidt has them playing JD, no doubt about that..
The attack has had patches where they’ve just gone lateral without front foot ball and realistically the big difference in this tour is the forwards have won the battles and the backs are reaping the reward. The maul was really good and when they went a man down to back the maul and get a couple of tries gave them a good buffer and Wales had to chase the game and that opened the game up and created more opportunities for the backs. Really AAA backing the maul and Skelton ripping the Welsh maul apart was the game changer. All three of the players mentioned have been playing well. Lolesio probably had his best game against the Welsh and good to see him get some space, have some confidence in his game and get some reward. Wright is really in the groove now after a pretty ordinary RC. Ikitau has put two very good games together and would like to see him at 12 again. Skelton and Salakaia-Loto I thought were hugely influential, Uru supported Skelton really well at the lineout and mauls and Valentini just did his thing. Valentini is just so consistent and he doesn’t overplay his role. And McReight just gets through a mountain of work and just goes and goes. He is a key defensive player, link player, key support player and chases everything. The Wallabies defence still needs improving but it’s like a switch has been flicked when they have the ball. The forwards are getting some front foot ball and we are playing with width in the backs. The backs are passing rather than one off. They do really need to back it up again this weekend against a good Scottish team.
Scotland will be a massive Test MJ, no question. And it was always going to be, within this schedule.
But, I do feel like the Wallabies are in a much better position to handle/contain/compete with the Scots now than was the case at the end of the TRC, so I don't know about anyone else, but I'm really excited about this game this weekend..
Wasn’t Ikitau injured and he might have been right sometime during the WC?
I thought Ikitau was left out because he busted his shoulder in one of the WC warm-ups? I remember that was a damning loss right on the eve of the tournament. Perhaps he healed up and was still left out.
Sean, MJ (above) - injury was the reason given at the time the squad was named (and Hooper was in the same boast), and that supposedly Ikitau wouldn't be right for the first games.
Ikitau was back in full training with the Brumbies as the Wallabies played their first pool match - and then was named and played for the Barbarians.
And several injured players still named in the RWC squad never got on the field, or only played one game..
Hard not to be optimistic but I can’t bring myself to get carried away.
Scotland will be tough. Sorry for him but I’m glad Dempsey isn’t playing this week. I want us to smash them and wouldn’t have enjoyed a Tah lad being on the wrong end.
Still more than a few MacAussies that will be in the same boat, Derek! 😄