‘Great when underdogs’: Hooper’s assessment of Wallabies’ season

Michael Hooper believes the Wallabies have performed at their best as underdogs this year, but a lack of consistency has defined their campaign, with just two wins in their last nine Tests.

Harry Wilson was the hero for the Wallabies in their season opener against the Flying Fijians, with the captain crashing over for a last-gasp try to steal the win in Newcastle. That was the team’s only match before facing the British & Irish Lions in a three-Test series.

The Lions were heavily favoured going into the series after running away with some big wins over Australian Super Rugby sides. They started the Test series with a clinical win in Brisbane, making game two a must-win for the Wallabies.

Australia raced out to a commanding half-time lead at the MCG, before a second-half fightback led the Lions to steal it at the end, with Hugo Keenan the hero in the final minute. But a week is a long time in Test rugby, with the Wallabies bouncing back 22-12 in the third Test.

The Wallabies backed up that famous result with an incredible comeback win over the Springboks in Johannesburg, fighting their way back from a 22-0 deficit with 38 unanswered points – but they’ve lost seven of their nine matches since then.

“It’s so hard to go back in time, isn’t it, and really break down the season as a whole,” Hooper said on Stan Sport’s Inside Line.

“It’s going to be really interesting how the team and the players really go back and do a review on this season. From mine, this year they’ve been great when underdogs.

“They’re underdogs going into the Lions, we saw nothing but Lions demolishing Super Rugby teams, then they played together and the Wallabies performed some amazing blocks of rugby through that whole period, but as underdogs the whole time.

“Fast-forward a week after that third Lions Test, they go over to Johannesburg, they go 20-odd points down in the first 20 minutes. The South Africans never looked better. From there, they go underdog status, they fight back, they find a way, they do some amazing things and get themselves back into the game.

“The patches have been intense but a little bit too brief in terms of playing well to really make a consistent season.”

Wilson’s leadership was a talking point after the Wallabies’ first Rugby Championship match of 2025, as the skipper turned down a series of kickable penalties in the pursuit of a win against Los Pumas in Townsville. The Wallabies ended up winning in spectacular fashion.

The Wallabies were beaten by Los Pumas the following week in Townsville and lost both Bledisloe Cup fixtures against the All Blacks. While they returned to winning ways with a hard-fought triumph over Japan in Tokyo, the men in gold have lost their last three.

But as Hooper explained, it’s not all doom and gloom. Hooper’s assessment of the Wallabies’ season reflects the challenges facing the team as they continue to build towards a Rugby World Cup on home soil in 2027.

“I think there’s some real green shoots,” Hooper added.

“There’s been some huge leadership moments that have been really of high quality.

“[Wilson], nothing stands out more than him and I think Joseph Suaalii had a big involvement in Townsville when they decided to go for the line. That was a big leadership moment.

“Will Skelton is undeniably a big leader within this team and the team plays different when he’s in there.

“I think things like that have been really quality. Performances throughout the year like the unearthing of ‘Jorgo’ again, this guy’s just taken it up to another level. Ikitau, McReight’s been fantastic.

“They showed in patches they’re a mobile, very hungry team but as the underdog. They haven’t been able to capitalise on really good performances when they’ve needed to in the backend of the season.”