LONG READ Wallabies must stop making life difficult for themselves to send Schmidt out on high

It wasn’t so much that the Wallabies lost to France that has rankled Australian rugby fans since Saturday night, but rather that there was no obvious plan of how to get themselves out of the hole they were suddenly in midway through the second half in Brisbane.

Eighth-ranked Australia were always going to be up against it, facing the fourth-ranked French, especially with the fresh Toulouse and Montpellier contingent waiting to meet them in Brisbane, after missing the first Nations Championship Test in New Zealand the week before.

And the uphill task only became harder when key players Carter Gordon and Tom Hooper were ruled out early last week, and then Ben Donaldson as well only 24 hours later.

It meant the Wallabies’ primary playmaking and game-controlling duties were left to ACT Brumbies fly-half Declan Meredith, on his debut, and Queensland Reds full-back Jock Campbell.

Meredith started the Super Rugby Pacific season in superb form before fading, not unlike the Brumbies, over the back half of the season. But his form was good enough to keep the incumbent Wallabies fly-half, Tane Edmed, on the bench all season bar one load management rotation match.

Campbell has filled in at fly-half for Queensland, including once around mid-season this year, but has never started a professional level game in a No.10 jersey.

To suggest it was a risk was to indulge in significant understatement.

Once Meredith and scrum-half Ryan Lonergan were replaced just shy of the hour mark, it felt like the last vestiges of Australia’s attacking shape went with them.

And so it quickly proved. As France sparked up properly in the second half, the Wallabies quickly found themselves on the back foot and even playing into Les Bleus’ hands.

As the attacking shape departed, the French defence was able to pressure the Wallabies into mistakes, pushing the Australians deeper into their own half and with no evident plan of how to get out of it.

Once Meredith and scrum-half Ryan Lonergan were replaced just shy of the hour mark, it felt like the last vestiges of Australia’s attacking shape went with them. Several times replacement nine Tate McDermott took off from the base of the ruck only to stop before contact and search for options nearby, having to change direction and retreat in the face of advancing defenders before getting the ball to whoever was closest.

Campbell, when trying to play to space, found himself playing much more east-west than north-south, with the French defenders happy to hand him off from one to the next. All they had to do was wait for the next inevitable Wallabies mistake and take advantage in any direction of their choosing.

This lack of shape led to Australia ceding ground quickly, which in turn highlighted yet another current shortcoming.

The Wallabies’ kicking game is becoming more and more predictable, in which defending teams know that if they can withstand the carries and any extended phase play that comes with it, Australia will have to kick for lack of any other real option.

Though they will often maintain possession for many more than five phases, the plan amounts to an almost rugby league-style of phase play until nothing happens, then kick.

Of the six teams playing Nations Championship games in Australia and New Zealand last Saturday, the Wallabies – across both defeats – and also Japan, in their loss to Ireland, were forced into kicking for territory in nearly two-thirds of all the kicks they made, yet still had less than half of the territory share for the match.

The Wallabies are still playing the old Irish high-possession system they played under Joe Schmidt and for many years under Andy Farrell as well. They remain convinced possession remains the best way of exiting their own half, yet are consistently being pinned back in their own half because of it.

The Wallabies are yet to fully embrace the idea that modern rugby is often best played without the ball. Maybe that’s the gradual influence of all the other possession-heavy sport played in Australia impacting our rugby now.

Both Ireland in Sydney, and France in Brisbane, kicked back at Australia for half of all kicks they took, and won the territory battle, 57% and 54% respectively. The Wallabies held more than half of all possession in both games, but what good is that when you’re stuck on your side of halfway?

Australia are also making fewer attacking kicks than these teams – and New Zealand and Italy as well – and though they might be retaining a similar percentage of contestable kicks as the others, that’s only equated to three contestable kicks retained across the two games.

Ireland’s game now has swung completely in the other direction. At least half of all kicks in both Nations Championship games so far have been made in attack, roughly half of those attacking kicks have been contestable. They retained 60% of contestables against the Wallabies, and 75% against Japan in Newcastle. They enjoyed 57% of territory, and scored five tries in both games, averaging 3.6 points per 22 entry.

Clearly, Ireland have made the switch to playing with the ball only where you can actually do something with it, but the Wallabies are yet to fully embrace the idea that modern rugby is often best played without the ball. Maybe that’s the gradual influence of all the other possession-heavy sport played in Australia impacting our rugby now.

It will be interesting to see whether the upcoming coaching transition to Les Kiss looks to make this adjustment, though you wouldn’t classify the Queensland Reds team of 2026, or any recent vintage, as being one that avoided playing in their own half at all costs.

It will be interesting to see whether there are signs of his increased input in the Wallabies’ preparations in Perth, where Kiss and his incoming coaching team become more involved in the lead-up to Australia hosting Italy at HBF Park on Saturday.

As it stands right now, it’s hard to know who needs a win over the Italians more – Schmidt or the playing group.

Schmidt said himself in Brisbane that he’s a naturally competitive guy and would love to have had more success with the Australian team than he has. He knows that there will be more focus on him this week, being his last Test week in charge, and he would love nothing more than to finish his time in Australia with a win.

Schmidt will say this week that the players don’t owe him anything, but they certainly owe themselves an opportunity to enjoy the fruits of what they’re trying to deliver on the field.

But it’s also been a good while since the Wallabies lost seven games on the bounce, and that will obviously be a major motivator for the players this weekend.

They will want to send Schmidt off with a win as well, but more importantly, they need to remind themselves as much as anyone that these two really strong first halves against Ireland and France can be backed up after half-time, and that they can play games out much closer to the full 80 minutes.

And they deserve that kind of performance. They’ve played some truly outstanding rugby in passages over these first two games of the Nations Championship, and it’s clear that they are trying to play with more enterprise. They’re playing wider to try and get the ball to their strike players in more space, and they have had success in opening up some very good defences.

Schmidt will say this week that the players don’t owe him anything, but they certainly owe themselves an opportunity to enjoy the fruits of what they’re trying to deliver on the field. The first step to achieving that success starts with not making things harder out on the field than it already is.