UNLUCKY 13TH FOR DRAGONS
AUSTRALIA won at the Millennium Stadium to continue their dominance over Warren Gatland’s Wales.
The visitors scored tries through Tatafu Polota-nau, Adam Coleman, Michael Hooper and Kurtley Beale as they withstood some intense pressure from Wales, whose tries came via Steff Evans and Hallam Amos.
It was a 13th straight win for the Wallabies over the Welsh, who they will meet again in the pool stages of the next global championship in Japan in two years’ time.
Wales coach Gatland, back at the helm of the side after his spell with the British and Irish Lions, had said in the week that he believed his side could win the World Cup, but on this evidence they will need to be more clinical with ball in hand.
Gatland said: “We tried to force too many passes and offloads but it’s what we’ve been encouraging the players to do.”
Australia showed muscle among the forwards for the opening try as they claimed a lineout 10 yards from the Wales line and drove their way over through hooker Polota-nau.
The Welsh hit back a few minutes later when scrum half Gareth Davies breezed through a rare gaping hole in the Australian defence, and as they took the ball through the phases, Leigh Halfpenny fed Evans to score out wide.
The end-to-end battle continued and when fly half Bernard Foley’s clever chip into the corner had the hosts scrambling and Will Genia played lock Coleman into a gap to score.
Australia grabbed the initiative on the stroke of half-time with a third try, as loose-forward Hooper barged his way over.
In the second period, after Beale ripped the ball from the hands of Evans on the halfway line, the fullback raced clear to score unopposed and the visitors’ lead ballooned to 13 points.
Wales wing Amos dotted down in the corner late on. Halfpenny missed the conversation. Injured centre Jonathan Davies had to be assisted from the field at the end.
Next up, Australia face England at Twickenham on Saturday, while Wales host Georgia.