Australia fans do not currently know whether to laugh or cry. Even this bonus-point win felt like a mixed blessing, technically keeping the team alive in the tournament but also serving to extend their qualification agony for another week. Unless Fiji contrive to lose against Portugal in their final Pool C match this weekend it will be game over for the Wallabies regardless.
At least they avoided the ultimate indignity of defeat by a spirited Portuguese side who asked enough attacking questions to delight both their travelling fans and their growing band of neutral admirers worldwide. Despite being temporarily reduced to 13 men at one stage in the second half, however, Eddie Jones’s side had a sufficiently big lead to avoid the unthinkable.
It is a sign of the times, nevertheless, when beating the world’s 16th‑ranked side represents a relative high point. On another day Portugal might have scored at least a couple more tries, with the Australia defence under frequent pressure, but a costly first-half yellow card significantly undermined their cause and tries from Richie Arnold, Dave Porecki, Angus Bell, Fraser McReight and Marika Koroibete ultimately proved decisive.
While Jones did his best to put a positive gloss on the situation – “We only had one objective and that was to stay alive” – he is fully aware of the intense public disquiet back home at the Wallabies’ near-certain failure to make the last eight for the first time in their history. “The disappointment is that we haven’t controlled our own destiny,” he said. “As I’ve said before, I take full responsibility for that.”
Even before kick-off there was loud booing around the stadium whenever Jones’s face appeared on the big screen – “At least they know who I am” – and the Wallabies’ defeats against Fiji and Wales are destined to remain the defining moments of their ill‑fated campaign. Jones is a survivor but this year – P9 W2 L7 – has been a rough old ride even by his standards. Whether he bats on or not, Australian rugby union is quite clearly in need of a major reboot.
It certainly feels a while ago since Jones’s Japan stunned South Africa in one of the all-time great World Cup heists in 2015. The local streets and trams were full of Portuguese fans hoping for a similar miracle on a gorgeous sunny day, with Os Lobos still rated as 22-1 outsiders before kick-off, despite having lost by only 28-8 against Wales who subsequently beat the Wallabies 40-6.
Quick in thought and deed, they have been doing their country proud at this World Cup and did so once again here. They also scored the game’s first try after Koroibete got himself into a complete tangle in his own in-goal area and conceded an attacking five‑metre scrum. With advantage being played the Portuguese backs moved the ball wide and their tall centre Pedro Bettencourt swallow‑dived in the right corner.
Unfortunately for the 28-year-old from Porto, who plays his club rugby in France for Oyonnax, his next intervention was less positive. An upright tackle saw him sent to the sin-bin and the resultant hole he left in midfield killed Portugal’s momentum stone dead.
Playing against 14 men the Wallabies took swift advantage by scoring three close-range forward tries inside seven minutes through Arnold, Porecki and Bell as the red-shirted defence parted rather too easily. “When we were down to 14 we didn’t control the game,” lamented their head coach, Patrice Lagisquet. “We tried to keep playing with width but we didn’t have the capacity to do it without a centre. It was suicide.”
As soon as Bettencourt reappeared, though, the tide turned again and another flowing breakout would have produced a score for the excellent flanker Nicolas Martins had he not been bundled into touch inches short. Australia’s 24-7 advantage at half-time was then further extended seven minutes after the restart when a spell of territorial pressure eventually enabled McReight to steal away and secure the bonus-point score. Portugal should have reduced the gap only for their hooker, Mike Tadjer, to have the ball dislodged by a Wallaby hand with the line begging. The replacement hooker Matt Faessler was subsequently sent to the sin-bin but the referee, Nika Amashukeli, opted against awarding a penalty try.
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When Samu Kerevi was also shown a yellow card for a leading forearm to the head of the Portugal captain, Tomás Appleton, it gave Os Lobos further encouragement. Their replacement back-row forward Rafael Simōes scored an overdue second try from a close-range drive, only for Australia to strike back through Koroibete six minutes from the end.
Jones attempted to crack a joke about trying to distract Fiji with their favourite traditional brew – “I’m thinking of giving Marika and Suli Vunivalu my credit card and get them to go into the Fijian camp with some kava … maybe that’ll work” – but this felt distinctly like the Wallabies’ last‑chance saloon.
