Wallabies v USA player ratings: how the squad performed in their final World Cup warm-up match
SOME shining lights and a few grey areas — how the Wallabies rated in their final World Cup warm-up match, a 47-10 win over USA in Chicago.
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How the Wallabies rated in their final warm-up game before the World Cup:
Kurtley Beale: A lively performance in his first Test start of the year. Really good work ethic to support breaking teammates for his try. 7
Joe Tomane: A slow start, but Tomane began to show his class late in the game when the US defence began starting to tire. Good involvement for Beale’s try. 6
Henry Speight: Didn’t have the attacking impact Australia would have hoped. The rushing US defence cramped him out wide, and too often he received the ball with defenders on top of him. 4.5
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Matt Giteau: Easily the most composed backline player, he brought a calm influence when the side lost direction. 7.5
Rob Horne: Became virtually anonymous in attack as Australia fumbled their way around the park. The winger hardly touched the ball, but had his usual powerful impact in the midfield defence. 5
Bernard Foley: Persistently probed the US defensive line with mixed results. a great start by scoring a try and making a break, he fell off towards the middle of the game before recovering his mojo to lead Australia’s late charge. 7
Nick Phipps: Struggled at the base of the ruck in the face of hassling pressure from the Eagles and insufficient support from his forwards. One poor box kick, but scored a good try backing up. 5
Wycliff Palu: Not a great outing. Palu made good ground early on, but errors crept into his game. Missed the tackle for the Eagles’ first try and he could only shake his head after a simple knock-on in the second half. 4
Sean McMahon: Best on ground, by a long way. Left indentations in US players’ ribs with his shoulders, ran like a demon and put in work at the breakdown. 9
Ben McCalman: A decent 80-minute effort from the flanker, but needed to get more yardage from his carries to make a compelling case for a start against England and Wales in the World Cup. Scott Fardy is still the man for the blindside. 5.5
Rob Simmons: Directed the lineout brilliantly, with the Wallabies winning all their throws after shocking performances against the All Blacks. 6.5
Kane Douglas: Showed just what he brings to the table with a hefty display. Was powerful in the lineout and with ball in hand, great signs before the World Cup. 7.5
Greg Holmes: Big scrummaging performance. While the US are certainly no England, it is good for Australia to have smashed a rival so emphatically in the set-piece. 7
Tatafu Polota-Nau: Encouraging performance from the hooker, reminding all of his value at Test level. He carried well. 7
James Slipper: A good captain’s knock. Slipper scrummaged well, lifted well, and ran well. To top it off, he earned a breakdown turnover too. 7.5
Reserves
James Hanson: Limited time, but hopefully he hangs around Europe for the next few weeks in case Stephen Moore or Tatafu Polota-Nau get injured. 5
Scott Sio: We all waited for the big moment when he threw the ball into the lineout. Near the end of the game he did, and Australia lost the lineout. The fears around naming only two specialist hookers continues to grow. 4
Toby Smith: Made his Test debut, and the Kiwi-born prop kept the scrum domination going while adding to the go-forward of the team late in the game. 5.5
Dean Mumm: Impressive yet again in limited time. Got heavily involved, scored a try and was busy in the tough stuff. 7
Sam Carter: A nice return to Test footy for the second-rower who has been sidelined with injury for the past three months. 6
Will Genia: Lifted the tempo of the match when he came on, sniping from the base of the ruck and firing quick passes to his runners. Set up Mumm’s try with a deft short ball. 7.5
Quade Cooper: Not a great deal of time, scored a try but also put in a poor kick at the end. 6
Taqele Naiyaravoro: First Test, first touch, first Test try. 7
Originally published as Wallabies v USA player ratings: how the squad performed in their final World Cup warm-up match