Wallaby blitz downs French in Sydney
Sat, 28 Jun 2008 14:05
Try time: Wallaby captain Stirling Mortlock scores
Australia scored 24 unanswered points in 20 minutes after the break to ease to a comfortable 34-13 win over a third-string French side at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney on Saturday.
Leading just 10-6 at half-time, the Wallabies stepped up the pace after the break to easily brushed aside the mediocre French outfit. France managed a late consolation try after the Wallabies eased up in the final 20 minutes.
It was a much better second half, especially if you were a Wallaby supporter but even if you were a neutral. Somebody struck a match and set the game alight - at least for half an hour.
In that half an hour the Wallabies raced clear. In fact it was 21 points in an 11-minute blitz that finished off the French side.
The big change for the Wallabies may have been the introduction of Phil Waugh or just a changed mindset that determined to make the tackle/rucks more effective. Till then the game had been a patchy affair with loads of handling errors and the tackle aggression coming from the French team, no doubt determined to get rid of their also-rans tag. After all there were no players from France's top four teams - which is France's fault, not Australia's. Eventually that half-hour blitz put the French in their place, for they were well and truly beaten and it would have come as no surprise if the score had been much higher.
Still after Stirling Mortlock's try the French did reasonably well, largely by means of pick-'n-drive and playing in close. They seemed determined to have the ball from tackle/rucks as slow as possible. Even if it was readily available they waited till it was too slow to be useful against the muscular Wallabies who repelled them time and again. In the end their one try came from the dancing speed of new cap Alexis Palisson with the fresh face.
There were many penalties against the Wallabies - 15 in all, five of them against Nathan Sharpe, though the sternest warning was against young Fulgence Ouedraogo of France who was penalised twice in quick succession.
In contrast with so many modern matches, the scrums were reset only once for a collapse. They were not always tidy but they were well organised.
Line-outs generally went with the throw though France lost their first throw in each half, the one in the second half sparking a try and signalling their defeat.
When Sébastien Chabal was penalised early in the match Matt Giteau missed from dead in front but when Damien Traille was penalised at a tackle, the Wallaby flyhalf goaled to make the score 3-0 after 19 minutes during which the French certainly got stuck in.
Two minutes later Rocky Elsom was penalised at a tackle and Dimitri Yachvili goaled. 3-3.
Just before half-time the Wallabies got a gem of a try. Near his own 22 Cameron Shepherd threw in to himself and started running down the left, beating Imanol Harinordoquy on the way. He gave to Mortlock and then the ball came right where Giteau scooted round Chabal to score a try which he converted. 10-3 after 36 minutes.
After the hooter to signal half-time the French had their most constructive passage in the half which ended when James Horwill was off-side at a knock-on and Yachvili goaled for a 10-6 score at the break.
France kicked off to start the second half and Giteau kicked out. France threw in at the line-out and lost it and the next thing Luke Burgess was racing down the field on the left. The ball came back to Australia and went right where the Wallabies bashed at the line. Al Baxter was close and then Sharpe was over near the posts,. Giteau converted. 17-6 after 42 minutes.
Immediately the Wallabies attacked again with a sharp run by Peter Hynes which Horwill carried on with determination. Berrick Barnes was actually over but Louis Picamoles managed to hold him up. That gave the Wallabies a five-metre scrum and they bashed again till Elsom cutback in a scissors off Giteau and scored. 22-6 after 47 minutes. Three tries in 11 minutes.
They nearly got another when Burgess broke again and got an exciting pass to Benn Robinson. The Wallabies seemed about to run away with the match as Giteau goaled a penalty to make it 27-6, but the French dug in.
Two penalties got them on the attack but the Wallabies repelled them from a five-metre line-out. They bashed, and Harinordoquy and Picamoles were close. The Wallabies were penalised again and Chabal tapped to set up another bash session but it ended when France were penalised.
France then did some more pick-'n-drive and were perhaps wise because the first time they went wide, the Wallabies scored. France ran in their own territory and Traille ignored the man outside of him to play back inside, as the French habitually did. He passed to François Trinh-Duc and in fact presented an easy intercept to Mortlock who raced over. 34-6.
A penalty again had the French basing and then suddenly a pass at close quarters say Palisson darting for the line. Mortlock crash-tackled him but the little wing managed to ground the ball near the upright. Trinh-Duc converted.
That was the last score though Palisson had another good moment as he counterattacked down the left and then played inside, but in no time the French resorted to pick-'n-drive. They had a bit more off a penalty-generated line-out but the Wallabies repelled them and won a scrum.
There was no sign that the French were rediscovering the flair which cliché believes is their national characteristic.
Man of the Match: Of the French Alexis Palisson had flashes of genius and Imanol Harinordoquy worked hard but the stars were Wallabies - strong Stirling Mortlock, rugged Rocky Elsom, Peter Hynes who always tried to get things going and our Man of the Match Luke Burgess who was the man who most effectively got victory going.
Moment of the Match: Cameron Shepherd's counterattack that led to Matt Giteau's try. It was such a relief that the game was alive after all. It must have been a great relief to the crowd of 48 899, the biggest Test crowd of June.
Villain of the Match: Nobody.
The scorers:
For Australia:
Tries: Giteau, Sharpe, Elsom, Mortlock
Cons: Giteau 4
Pens: Giteau 2
For France:
Try: Palisson
Con: Trinh-Duc
Pens: Yachvili 2
The teams:
Australia: 15 Cameron Shepherd, 14 Peter Hynes, 13 Stirling Mortlock (captain), 12 Berrick Barnes, 11 Lote Tuqiri, 10 Matt Giteau, 9 Luke Burgess, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 George Smith, 6 Rocky Elsom, 5 Nathan Sharpe, 4 James Horwill, 3 Al Baxter, 2
Stephen Moore, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements: 16 Adam Freier, 17 Ben Alexander, 18 Dean Mumm, 19 Phil Waugh, 20 Sam Cordingley, 21 Ryan Cross, 22 Adam Ashley-Cooper.
France: 15 Pépito Elhorga, 14 Alexis Palisson, 13 Damien Traille, 12 François Trinh-Duc, 11 Benjamin Thiéry , 10 Benjamin Boyet, 9 Dimitri Yachvili, 8 Imanol Harinordoquy, 7 Louis Picamoles, 6 Fulgence Ouedraogo, 5 Sébastien Chabal, 4 Lionel Nallet (captain), 3 Benoît Lecouls, 2 Sébastien Bruno, 1 Lionel Faure.
Replacements: 16 Benjamin Kayser, 17 Renaud Boyoud, 18 David Couzinet, 19 Mathieu Lièvremont, 20 Sébastien Tillous-Borde, 21 Thibault Lacroix, 22 David Janin.
Referee: Marius Jonker (South Africa)
Touch judges: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa), Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand)
TMO: Johann Meuwesen (South Africa)
