Rejuvenated Wallabies Claim An Impressive Win Against England
By Phoebe Awiti
It was one of the most noticeable wins in the Joe Schmidt era with a victory over England, in what commentators termed "one of the most phenomenal matches of the weekend in the Autumn Nation Series yet".
The conditions were set for an epic match up at Allianz stadium Twickenham where Australia edged out England with a last-second try, winning 42-37 in a thrilling Autumn Nations Series match on November 9, 2024. England started strong with Chandler Cunningham-South scoring two early tries. The headline-hogging inclusion of league convert Jordan Suaalii in the Australian midfield wasn’t without merit. Lawrence, England center had his missgivings about the 21-year-old before the game: “I’ve seen a lot of his footy over the years and he’s been an incredible player in league.
“If you just look at his stature, he’s a big lad at 6ft 5ins and he’s quick, so you know you have to take time and space away from him as quickly as possible.
“There’s definitely a bit of unknown about him and we don’t know how he will step up, but I’m excited to go up against world-class players".
Suaalii displayed some eye-catching handling, suggesting there is a lot more to come this Autumn Nations Series campaign from a young man playing his first game of union since he was a schoolboy.
In fact, it was just such a moment of ball-playing magic in the 26th minute that led to fullback Tom Wright’s try, as Suaalii produced something akin to a basketball wrist-flick pass over the English defender to send his teammate through unopposed. Lolesio’s conversion from out wide was superb: 15-10. By halftime the English were trailing the Wallabies 18-20 by halftime whistle.
In the second half, England surged with Ollie Sleightholme scoring twice and Maro Itoje’s late try. However, in the final moments, Max Jorgensen scored for Australia, securing the win with Ben Donaldson's conversion sealing the scoreline
Despite an impressive fightback by England, with key contributions from Marcus Smith and Ollie Sleightholme, Australia managed to stay ahead. In the final minutes, Max Jorgensen’s try sealed the game for Australia, bringing an exhilarating finish to this close match. This game marked Australia’s return to form against England, who had previously dominated their head-to-head matchups.
The teams
England team: 15 George Furbank, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 12 Henry Slade, 11 Tommy Freeman, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Ben Spencer, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Tom Curry, 6 Chandler Cunningham-South, 5 George Martin, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Jamie George (c),1 Ellis Genge
Replacements: 16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Fin Baxter, 18 Dan Cole, 19 Nick Isiekwe, 20 Alex Dombrandt; 21 Harry Randall, 22 George Ford, 23 Ollie Sleightholme
Australia team: 15 Tom Wright, 14 Andrew Kellaway, 13 Joseph-Aukuso Suallii, 12 Len Ikitau, 11 Dylan Pietsch, 10 Noah Lolesio, 9 Jake Gordon, 8 Harry Wilson (c), 7 Fraser McReight, 6 Rob Valetini, 5 Jeremy Williams, 4 Nick Frost, 3 Taniela Tupou, 2 Matt Faessler, 1 Angus Bell
Replacements: 16 Brandon Paenga-Amosa, 17 James Slipper, 18 Allan Alaalatoa, 19 Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, 20 Langi Gleeson, 21 Tate McDermot, 22 Ben Donaldson, 23 Max Jorgensen.