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'Let's not celebrate getting close': Wallabies great's blunt assessment after French Test
Wallabies great Drew Mitchell doesn’t believe Australia should “celebrate getting close” against France, after losing to the World No. 2 30-29 in a thrilling Test.
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Flyhalf Bernard Foley got the visitors off to an ideal start at Stade de France, converting a penalty during the first few minutes after a dominant Wallabies scrum.
While tries were hard to come by, with penalties from Foley and France’s Thomas Romas largely dominating the opening half, Australia did score a try of the year contender.
In the 18th minute Lalakai Foketi finished off a fantastic breakaway from Tom Wright, who linked up with Jock Campbell.
Julien Marchand scored for France after the half-time siren, before Campbell crossed for his first international try mid-way through the second term.
But the heartbreaking moment for Australian rugby fans came inside the last five minutes, when star winger Damian Penaud danced his way around Wright and Campbell to give the hosts a one-point lead – and ultimately the win.
Speaking on Stan Sport after the Test, former Wallaby winger Mitchell said Australia should’ve won that match at Stade de France.
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“Let’s not celebrate getting close, they should have won that game, they should have lost last week,” Mitchell said.
“We see improvement in this Wallabies team but the same things are repeating itself over and over. We should be celebrating a win here.
“It’s hard when we get ourselves in these positions and we find a way to lose the game.”
How Dave Rennie's side fared in the heart-breaking 30-29 defeat to France. #FRAvAUS https://t.co/0vNiXbGIVk
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 6, 2022
Replacement Reece Hodge put the men in gold up by four points with five minutes to play, but the visitors couldn’t close out the Test match.
From the kick-off that followed, as Mitchell highlighted, there were a number of mistakes in key moments which cost the Wallabies.
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Centre Len Ikitau caught the kick-off following the Hodge penalty, and made a small half-break through the French defensive line.
Hodge then cleared the ball before having his “ankles broken”, before Les Bleus spread the ball left for what ended up being the match winner.
“It’s got to be within the team, they’ve got to hold each other accountable. They’ve got to stay in those moments, they’ve got to compete in every moment,” Mitchell added.
“We saw in the build up to that try, Ikitau got the ball of the kick-off… it was a poor kick from Reece Hodge so he chased his kick, got his ankles broken, some nice footwork it must be said from (Matthieu) Jailbert.
“Then on the end of that, some poor defence from Tom Wright and Jock Campbell.
“Those moments, you’ve got to be present in that moment. You can’t be looking at the scoreboard thinking, ‘okay we’ve got three minutes to wind this click down.’
“They’ve got to go and compete in every one of them because in each of those moments I just spoke about, every one of them went up chest up, weren’t using shoulders.
“It’s those little moment that differentiate a four-point win or a one-point loss. It’s tough.”
The All Blacks star put in another dominant display in the win over Wales. #WALvNZL https://t.co/R2KQlEzOXs
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 6, 2022
Also speaking on the Stan Sport post-match show, Kurtley Beale said the result showed the “quality” that the French team have.
“Just heartbreaking. The Wallabies had a lot of opportunities to win that game and a quality team like the French are going to make you pay when you’ve got ill-discipline at the ruck, and just missing those opportunities,” Beale said.
“They’ll be hurting for sure.
“They’re a quality team and they bounced back,” he added later.
“The Wallabies threw a lot of punches at them and as you can see, their main players stepped up. Penaud, what a finisher, he’s always in the big moments when France are on the good end of the scoreboard.”
Australia’s record on their 2022 spring tour now sits and one win and one loss after a hard-fought victory over Scotland at Murrayfield last weekend.
The Wallabies still have Test matches against Italy, Ireland and Wales to play before their season comes to an end.
Comments on RugbyPass
I know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
2 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
2 Go to commentsNot sure exactly what went wrong for him at Glasgow but it’s pretty clear he ain’t Franco’s cup of tea. Suspect he would have been better served heading out of Scotland around the same time as Finn, Hoggy and Jonny!
1 Go to commentsBulls disrespected the Northampton supporters and the competition. Decide quickly, fully in or out.
24 Go to commentsI wonder if Parling was ever on England’s radar as a coach? Obviously Borthwick is a great lineout coach, but I do worry he might be taking on too much as both head coach and forwards coach.
1 Go to commentsJason Jenkins has one cap. When Etzebeth was his age he had over 80 caps. Experience matters. He will never amount to what Etzebeth has because he hasn’t been developed as an international player.
2 Go to commentsSays much about the player picking this gig over the easier and bigger rewards offered to him in Japan. Also says a lot about the state sanctioned tax benefits the Irish Revenue offers pro rugby players, with their ten highest earning years subject to an additional 40% tax relief and paid as a lump sum, in cash, at retirement. Certainly helps Leinster line up the financial ducks in a row to fund marquee signings like this!!! No other union anywhere in world rugby benefits from this kind of lucrative financial sponsorship from their government…
5 Go to commentsTrue Jordie could earn a lot more in Japan. But by choosing Leinster he’ll be playing with 1 of the best clubs in the world and can win a champions cup and URC…..
6 Go to commentsThanks for that Marshy, noticed you didn't say who is gonna win it. We know who ain't gonna win it - your Crusaders outfit. They've gone from having arguably the best Super Rugby first five ever, to having a clutch of rookies. Hurricanes all the way!
1 Go to commentsGeez you really have to question the NRLs ability to produce players of quality. Its pathetic. Dont the 25mil in Aus produce enough quality womens players. Sad.
1 Go to commentsBulls fan here, and agree 100% with the conclusion (and little else) of this article. SA sides should absolutely f-off from the champs cup until we get fair scheduling, equal support for travel arrangements and home semis. You know, like all the european teams get.
24 Go to commentsI’m yet to see why Grace would be an ABs contender. He’s pedestrian and lacks the dominance required of a top flight 8.
11 Go to commentsGee my Highlanders were terrible. They have gone backwards since the start of the season. The trouble began when we left Millar behind to prep as the 10 against the Brumbies and he was disconnected from the team that came back from Aussie. We rested Patchell for that game and we blew an avalanche of ball in good attacking positions in the 1st half. Against the Rebels we seem to of gone into a pod system with forwards hanging off from the breakdown leaving Fakatava to secure our ball!
80 Go to commentsPot Kettle, the English and French teams have done it for years.
24 Go to commentsHas virtually played every minute of previous games. Back row of Li Lo Willie , Grace and Blackadder would be the 1. Crusaders issue is a very average 1st 5 who cannot run. Kicking in general play is also below par They need to put Yong Kemara in. He must have so.e talent for them to bring him down from Waikato. Hoehepa would struggle to play in so.e club sided
11 Go to commentsI hope this a good thing making all these changes!
3 Go to commentsThe Hurricanes are good, especially with a decent coach now. However, let’s be real, the Crusaders and Chiefs are clearly a good degree weaker without the players they’ve lost overseas now. The Canes lost one player. It’s also why the aussie teams ‘seem’ to be stronger.
9 Go to commentsOr you could develop your own players instead of constantly taking from the SH competition and weakening it in the process? With all the player and financial resources these unions have compared to SH countries you’d think they could manage that, or is weakening the SH comps and their national sides an added bonus? Probably.
3 Go to commentsNot so fast Aaron, we might need you in black yet lol. God knows he’d be a lot less nerve-racking than hot and (very) cold players like Perofeta. It’s really a shame Reuben Love isn’t playing 10, we’ve got enough 15 options.
4 Go to commentsAnd those from the NH still seem to be puzzled (and delighted) why NZ’s depth isn’t what it once was. Over 600 NZ players overseas, that’s insane. This sort of deal is why Super Rugby coaches have admitted they struggle now to find enough quality to fill out their squads.
6 Go to comments