Wallabies fall short of huge comeback in Rugby Championship defeat by Pumas

Fast-finishing Australia lose to the Pumas 28-26 as they pay a heavy price for conceding 13 penalties to the visitors’ five in Sydney

With their backs to the wall again after an error strewn hour had left them 18 points behind, the Wallabies looked forlornly to the Allianz Stadium grandstands and saw Rugby Australia chief Phil Waugh sitting with John Howard. Surely this was the omen they needed to emulate the former Prime Minister’s famous “Lazarus with a triple-bypass” comeback.

Joe Schmidt’s side have a reputation for rising from the ashes with last-gasp victories. They beat England in November with a last-play roll of the dice and they shocked Argentina last week with a try in overtime. On Saturday, in another rousing fightback before 41,912 in Sydney, they clawed their way back to trail 28-26 with seconds left on the clock.

But in a game marred by over-officious refereeing, Australia fell just short. Despite a controversial try to replacement winger Filipo Daugunu in the 79th minute that got them within striking distance, Australia fumbled the chance to start a Rugby Championship with three wins in four matches for the first time since 2011. Australia outscored Argentina four tries to one, but they conceded 13 penalties to Argentina’s five, allowing the Pumas deadeye Santi Carreras to kick eight from eight from the tee and square the head-to-head series at one-all.

The 28-26 defeat drops Australia’s rugby renaissance under coach Schmidt into a slightly lower gear after scintillating victories over the British & Irish Lions, world champions South Africa and Argentina last week. But the belief they can next break New Zealand’s 23-year stranglehold on the Bledisloe Cup later this month remains.

Australia started poorly again. As they had last week, the Pumas converted promise into early points, Santiago Carreras spearing home a penalty inside three minutes. But the Wallabies hit back quickly, winning a turnover from the kickoff and, after hard runs from Harry Wilson and Rob Valetini, sent Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii powering over.

Then disaster. In his first start for the Wallabies, Tane Edmed’s dawdling kick for touch was charged down by Pumas captain Julian Montoya who scrambled it back and scored, leaving the rookie flyhalf’s face as red as his hair and Australia in arrears. Another Carreras penalty soon after extended Argentina’s lead to 13-7.

Offered a penalty 30m out, the captain Harry Wilson shook his head. He had said a vocal Townsville crowd was the difference in his decision to spurn three point-blank penalties to draw that Test and chase a five-pointer to win it. Last week it worked. Here it backfired, Rob Valetini crossing the line but fumbling the touchdown.

Australia’s comedy of errors continued when halves Nic White and Edmed muddled a kickoff and Max Jorgensen was yellow carded for a deliberate knockdown. After conceding eight first-half penalties and allowing the Pumas to race to a 21-7 lead at half-time last week, Schmidt had drilled discipline all week. Alas, it was MIA again.

The Wallabies knew all too well the wrath of a wounded Puma. Last year Argentina had bounced back from a 20-19 home loss to dish out a 67-27 walloping in which they overturned a 17-point deficit and condemned Australia to their heaviest Test defeat.

Their luck was in. Argentina had already fumbled three tries with errant final touches. It should have allowed the rattled Wallabies to regroup and surf the roaring hometown support to points. But despite a flurry of bursts by Hunter Paisami, each chance was squandered as attacking lines tangled and communication broke down.

After staggering to half-time 19-7 behind, the Wallabies’ dog’s breakfast spilled over into the second half. Schmidt’s new-look backline spluttered. Each time Australia looked like scoring, the final pass was spilled or support never arrived. Carreras punished each piece of clumsiness with his boot, kicking the Pumas to 25-7 with 25 minutes to play.

As always, Wilson was inspirational in his charges and James O’Connor brought late calm and width to steal late tries to Andrew Kellaway and Daugunu and get the sold-out crowd on their feet. But Australia’s composure crumbled under the high ball and ultimately they couldn’t run on feet they’d shot off with their own impetuosity.

With a number of forced changes to the side that beat Argentina last week, Schmidt rued his side’s lack of cohesion. “We’ve got to be better in the aerial battle, but I thought we won the battle on the ground … we made 11 line breaks to three,” he said. “But on the back of that we dropped the ball cold and coughed it up on the ground. Those are the things you can’t afford to do against the good teams.”

Tate McDermott refused to blame the defeat on Christophe Ridley’s zealous whistle. “We didn’t lose that game because of the ref,” McDermott said. “We lost it because of our ill-discipline.”

With tough Tests against the All Blacks coming up in Eden Park this month and in Perth on 4 October, Australia must reset. “I’m absolutely devastated,” admitted Fraser McReight. “But now we need to use the time wisely. We’ve got to come back into camp ... the Bledisloe is on the line.”