Trio called in as winless Wallabies farewell Schmidt

Outgoing coach Joe Schmidt has resisted any temptation to send a Bernard Foley SOS as he attempts to avoid some unwanted Wallabies history in his final game as coach.

The Wallabies sank to a sixth straight loss and ninth in 10 Tests in Brisbane on Saturday, beaten 42-26 by France despite leading the back-to-back Six Nations champions 21-12 at halftime.

The wheels came off in a seven-minute stint that yielded three tries when fullback Tom Wright, who impressed in his return to the starting side, was sin-binned for a professional foul.

Declan Meredith, the 27-year-old debutant in the No.10, couldn’t negotiate any peace for his side as opposite number Romain Ntamack and brilliant fullback Matthieu Jalibert steamrolled the hosts.

The loss dropped Schmidt’s winning percentage to 36.66 ahead of his final game in charge, against Italy in Perth next Saturday.

He needs a victory to jump slightly above Dave Rennie (38.2 per cent) and avoid finishing with the worst win-loss ratio among Wallabies coaches. It currently sits at 11 wins, 19 losses.

Australia coughed up a 12-point lead in a 33-31 loss to world No.3 Ireland last weekend in Sydney.

The side’s only victory in their past 10 Tests came against Japan.

Schmidt took over from Eddie Jones with the program in shambles after the Wallabies’ historic early exit at the 2023 World Cup.

He was convinced to stay in the role for these three Tests before Les Kiss, who was coaching the Queensland Reds this season, takes over next month. Kiss observed operations without direct involvement last week.

“My time’s nearly finished and I just want to leave the house in good order,” Schmidt said.

“It’s hard at the moment to rationalise the positives, and I know there were some.”

He insists the belief remains internally and that he can feel it externally after back-to-back sell-outs in Brisbane and Sydney.

“But to galvanise that we have to get results, and I feel that acutely,” Schmidt said.

“You don’t take jobs on like this to come second. Internally I’m incredibly competitive and just want these guys to get a little bit of reward.”

Schmidt pointed to the side’s high turnover of No.10s – they have tried seven in the past 17 Tests, mostly due to injury – as a disruption that has contributed to their poor results.

“When things don’t go our way we’ve got to get some traction, and part of that is around experience,” he said.

Meredith was propelled into a debut after Carter Gordon and Ben Donaldson both suffered calf injuries against Ireland.

That double blow also forced Schmidt to use fullback Jock Campbell in the unfamiliar role of reserve playmaker.

Donaldson could prove his fitness to face Italy, but Schmidt has included 22-year-old playmaker Harry McLaughlin-Phillips in the Perth squad after he’d trained with the side in Brisbane.

That’s left 71-Test veteran No.10 Bernard Foley, viewed as a safe pair of hands to complement the youth, waiting in the wings as he pursues a return to the NSW Waratahs next season after a stint in Japan.

Meredith is confident the side has the cattle to succeed and wants another shot.

“If I get another opportunity I’d want to deliver more,” he said.

“That’s everyone’s kind of feeling in the change room, after a game like that, to come back and provide a bigger exclamation mark.”

The speedy talent out of Cairns, who grafted for years in Canberra before seizing his chance at the Brumbies this year, misread a defensive play in the first half that led to a try, and was unable to win back any momentum once the French got a footing.

“They put you to the wire when they have momentum; you learn that in Tests, momentum is everything in a game and it’s hard to win back,” Meredith said.

“Definitely a few lessons learnt, but keen to get back on the horse.”

Reds back-rower Joe Brial and centre Isaac Henry have also been added to the squad for the injured Tom Hooper (shoulder) and Hunter Paisami (knee).