Wallaroos out to do the impossible against World Cup favourites Red Roses
The Wallaroos feel back-to-back wins over Northern Hemisphere rivals Scotland and Wales has been the perfect preparation to tackle Rugby World Cup heavyweights England.
The Australian women take on the world number one side on Sunday in Auckland in a quarter-final showdown, looking to end a 28-game winning streak that dates back to July 2019.
In England’s last pool match, a 75-0 romp against South Africa, they scored 12 of their 13 tries through the forwards so taking on other forward-powered teams has the Wallaroos primed according to to lock Kaitlan Leaney.
“It’s been good having Scotland and Wales in the prep for our England game because they’re similar in the way they play, where they focus on set-piece,” the 22-year-old Waratahs lock said.
“We’ve been working really hard on defending that so I think each week we’re getting better and showing that we can shut that down.
“It’s exciting that we’re building each week and every game we’re getting better and we can see in review that we’re leaving so many opportunities out on the field so hopefully we can go out there and show them what the Aussies are made of.”
Assistant coach Sione Fukofaka said the part-time Wallaroos felt excited by the opportunity to test themselves against the world’s best, who have full-time rugby contracts.
They have continued to take steps with their gritty 13-7 win over Wales the first time the Wallaroos had banked successive wins since 2019.
He urged the underdogs to play without fear as they did in the opening World Cup game, when they raced to a 17-0 lead over hosts New Zealand in front of a huge Eden Park crowd before being reeled in.
“It’s a massive privilege to come up against a team of that quality,” Fukofaka said on Tuesday.
“We don’t get to play England very often so embracing that opportunity is a massive part of this week.
“We talked about this against New Zealand at Eden Park – the pressure is all on the other team with the record coming in so we can play with a bit of freedom and hopefully start the game in a similar fashion.”
They have studied France’s pool performance against England, with the Red Roses forced to scramble to a 13-7 victory.
Fukofaka said the Australians needed to improve their conversion rate from inside 22 and continue to nail their set piece, but believes the signs are good.
“We’ve always felt if we can keep our standards high and play to our strengths, that we give ourselves an opportunity and the more games we play against quality opposition, clearly we are improving,” he said.
“Having the opportunity to play England who have the 28-game win streak in a quarter-final is a massive occasion and you saw in the opening game the girls relish those opportunities.”
– Melissa Woods
Comments on RugbyPass
We’re building a bridge but can't agree where the river is.
2 Go to commentsfirst no arms shoulder or helmet tackle into his rib cage is going to be so very painful even to watch. go back to RU mate.
1 Go to commentsBulls by 5. Plus another 50.
3 Go to commentsJohan Goosen avatar. Cute. Surely someone at RP knows how to do a google image search?
3 Go to commentsCan’t these games play a little earlier? Asking for a friend.
3 Go to commentsIt’s impressive that we can see huge stadiums with attendance in the 40 000 to 50 000 region. It shows how popular this competition is becoming. What is even more impressive is the massive growth in broadcast viewership. The URC is one of the two best leagues in the World, the other being the Top14.
7 Go to commentsChristie is not Sottish, like the majority of the Scotland team.
2 Go to commentsHold the phone, decline over-rated. Is it a one game, dead cat bounce or the real thing? Has the Penney dropped? Stay tuned.
45 Go to commentsTotally deserved win for the Crusaders Far smarter than the Chiefs who seem to be avoiding the basics when it matters Hotham showed them what was missing and Hannah seems a real find - a tad light but that can be fixed over time
8 Go to commentsGreat insight into the performance culture with Sarries and I predict Christie will be a fixture in the Scotland team now for some time to come. However, he is slightly missing his own point around Scotland “being soft” when he cites physicality examples in defence of that slight. The issue is much closer to the example he referenced around feeling off before a game but being told “it doesn’t matter, you can still play well” by Farrell. Until Scotland can get their psyche in that square, they will carry on folding under extreme pressure…
2 Go to comments> We are having to adapt, evolve and innovate more than when we were in Super Rugby where there was only really one style that everybody had to play to gain the most success. Have = able to? Interesting what that one style might be? I thought SA sides still had bad tours now, or at least bad schedule, months away? Those extra few hours flights have to be a killer though, no surprise to see their sides doing so badly at the start of the season each year. I wouldn’t enjoy that unfairness as a supporter.
7 Go to commentsThe problem for NZ, and Aus, is they ripped up the SR model and lost a massive chunk of revenue that hasn’t been replaced. Don’t forget SA clubs went North because they were left with no choice, Argy unceremoniously binned and Japan cast adrift. Now SR wasn’t perfect, far from it, but they’ve jumped into something without an effective plan, so far, to replace what they’ve lost. The biggest revenue potential now lies in Japan but it won’t be easy or quick to unlock, they are incredibly insular in culture as a nation. In the meantime, there is a serious time bomb sitting under SH rugby and if it happens then the current financial challenges will look like a picnic. IF the Boks follow their provincial teams and head north then it’s revenue meltdown. Not guaranteed to happen but the status quo is a very odd hybrid, with the Boks pointing one way and the clubs pointing the other way. And for as long as that remains then the threat is real.
45 Go to commentsI think Etene has had some good tuition, likely while at the Warriors to be a professional that helped his rugby jump, but he was certainly thrown in the deep end way too early. Should have arguably 20 less SR caps, and therefor a way better record that he does at his age, but his development would have been fast tracked by the need to satiate his signing away from league. Again, credit to him and others that he has done it so well. Easy to fall over under that pressure in the big leagues like that but he kept at it when I myself wasn’t sure he was good enough.
1 Go to commentsAwesome story. I wonder what a bigger American (SA) scene might have mean for Brex.
1 Go to comments“Johnny McNicholl and the Crusaders” save a Penney. Who has been in camp this week and showed them how to play?
8 Go to commentsSo, reports of the Crusaders’ demise / terminal decline are perhaps just - slightly - premature/exaggerated…? 🤔 Will we see a deep-dive into that by the estimable Rugbypass scribes, and maybe one or two mea culpas? Thought not.
8 Go to comments1. The Chiefs are rudderless without DMac, which enhances his AB chances 2. Chiefs pack are powderpuffs. The hard men arent there anymore 3. They had their golden title chance last yr and wont threaten this yr. Gone in second round of playoffs.
8 Go to commentsHonestly, why did you have to publish such a foolish article the day they play us? 😂
45 Go to comments> They are not standalone entities. They are linked to an amateur association which holds the FFR licence that allows the professional side to compete in the league. That’s a great rule. This looks like the chicken or egg professional scenario. How long is it going to be before the club can break even (if that is even a thing in French rugby)? If the locals aren’t into well it would be good to se them drop to amateur level (is it that far?). Hope they can reset from this level and be more practical, there will be a time when they can rebuild (if France has there setup right).
1 Go to commentsWhat about changing the ball? To something heavier and more pointed that bounces unpredictably. Not this almost round football used these days.
35 Go to comments