Rugby: Australia win, England gone

Australia first five Bernard Foley scores the first try of the game. Photo: Reuters
Australia first five Bernard Foley scores the first try of the game. Photo: Reuters

Australia sent England tumbling into the abyss on Saturday when they demolished the hosts 33-13 at their Twickenham fortress to ensure the 2003 champions would take no further part in their own Rugby World Cup after the pool stage.

First five Bernard Foley did most to break English hearts by racking up 28 points, including two tries, as Australia booked a place in the quarterfinals and took Wales with them from Pool A.

Australia were well worth their win, scoring both of the tries in the first half for a 17-3 lead and holding on when a desperate England threw everything at them in the second, trying to avoid a first ever pool-stage exit.

The mobility of the Wallabies always gave them an edge and England were simply unable to establish the dominance they had hoped for at the scrum and in the heavyweight tight exchanges.

Winger Anthony Watson gave England a sniff of hope with a second-half try and Owen Farrell kicked eight points, but the first five finished the match in the sin bin for a high tackle on centre Matt Giteau.

Giteau had the last laugh when he put a gloss on the score with a last-minute try, which Foley converted to take his tally with the boot to 18 points.

Roared on by the majority of the 80,000 crowd, England had come out firing, but it was Australia who would have opened the scoring if fullback Israel Folau had managed to get his pass away in the fourth minute.

Foley and Farrell then exchanged penalties, the Englishman squaring up the scores after 12 minutes when Australia collapsed a scrum.

That rattled the Wallabies but they worked their way back into the contest and after 20 minutes Foley silenced the crowd when he brushed off a tackler and shimmied his way to the line for a converted try.

England's problems deepened five minutes before the break when Australia conjured up the best move of the night to score their second.

Halfback Will Genia switched his pass at the last moment from a ruck about 30 metres out to find Foley coming around behind him on the reverse, with Kurtley Beale on his shoulder.

The Waratahs team mates exchanged passes at pace to cut through the defence and Foley touched down before converting his own try.

Matters worsened for England 10 minutes after halftime, when prop Joe Marler was penalised at the scrum and given a lecture by referee Romain Poite.

England replaced Marler immediately but Foley slotted the penalty to give the visitors a 20-10 lead.

The hosts had to strike back and six minutes later they did when winger Watson turned a half-chance into a try by bulldozing his way through three tacklers.

Farrell converted and cut the deficit still further with his second penalty after 65 minutes but the final three scores went to Australia through two more Foley penalties and Giteau's coup de grace.

Add a Comment