It was an absolute belter of a match and the Wallabies – who played the majority of the football – managed to hang on until the donger. This one match went a long way to determine the success of the season. How did each of the players fare?
James Slipper
With no scrum until the 45th minute, it was all about effort around the park and he certainly put in, cleaning up loose balls and stepping backs. 7
Stephen Moore
He’s always been a strong performer in the ‘tight loose’, but this season Squeak has turned into one of our more devastating wide runners. Got through a power of work 8
Sekope Kepu
Has progressed from passenger to contributor this tour. His throwdown of Hibbard was matched by his presence whenever the handbags came out 7
Rob Simmons
Another developer on this tour; his ability in the air for both lineouts and restarts is a real asset. He stood up in the tough stuff and the brain fades seem to be fading. 7
James Horwill
A very solid defensive effort from Big Kev but he’s still lacking that dynamism. Hopefully a rest will help re-discover it. 6
Scott Fardy
From squad bolter to Wallaby star in one season. A bold statement, but is he starting to make a claim as one of the better blind sides in world rugby? Who’s bested him? Can’t blame Sully for giving him MoTM 8
Michael Hooper
All that effort and not even a yellow card! He now adds so much to the Wallabies in so many facets of the game – tackles, runs, breakdown, kick chase – it’s hard to see how leave him out of it. 8
Ben Mowen
On re-watching the match I thought he got bit of a raw deal from Barnes at the breakdown. Having said that Ben deliberately pushes the boundaries there which was key to disrupting Welsh momentum. He as also a menace in the air. 7
Will Genia
The skills are getting sharper – the box kicks, the accuracy of the passes – but the speed of delivery is still losing us a metre. Great defensive effort this match as well – if only he hadn’t spilled that pill! 7
Quade Cooper
Quade certainly put on a show at the Millennium Stadium – George North will be having nightmares over those flick passes. What was great to see though was the pace at which the backline hit the Welsh in attack, forcing them to make decisions. His kicking game was also excellent – if he’d nailed that drop goal, who knows what his score could have been! 9 GAGR Man of the Match
Nick Cummins
More than just a great aftermatch interview, the Honey Badger continues to put in bullocking performances whenever he takes the field. Energy like his lifts a team 7
Christian Leali’ifano
Did the little things well on Sunday – backed up, tackled slotted his goals – just not tearing it up at the international level, yet. 6
Adam Ashley-Cooper
Finished off in style what must be his best rugby season in terms of consistency of performance. Straightened the attack, contested re-starts and made turnovers. If only he hadn’t gifted North that try! 7
Joe Tomane
He must have one of the most powerful set of jet shoes over the first ten metres going around – broke the first two tackles with ease on Sunday and showed great handling skills to field Quade’s passes and Izzy’s pill for the try. 8
Israel Folau
By the look in North and Cuthbert’s eyes, they were on the verge of filling their shorts whenever he came near the ball – and rightfully so as he tore them a new one. A slightly earlier pass every now and again wouldn’t hurt though. 8
Tatafu Polota-Nau
A strong cameo but not at 100% pace. 5
Ben Alexander
Not scrummaging suits him perfectly! Injected energy at a difficult point in the match. 6
Kane Douglas
Did some solid grunt but could have done with some more impact. 6
Dave Dennis
Struggled to make impact from the bench. 5
Mike Harris
Stood out in his bench contribution – tackled like a demon and ran powerfully. 7
Nic White
N/A
Bernard Foley
Not a lot of time, but scrambled hard
The patented G&GR ratings guide:
10 – A legendary performance to go down in the history books
9 – Outstanding performance: Man of the match shoo-in
8 – Excellent all-round game
7 – Good game with a few sparkles
6 – Solid performance
5 – Average – ho hum
4 – Below par
3 – Had a bad game
2 – Tell your story walking pal
1 – A complete joke
As you can see from the scores – a top all round team effort. You on board?
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