Wallabies vs New Zealand: Australia left a joke once again
Australia has been humiliated at New Zealand’s house of pain as a 23-match hoodoo again showed the Wallabies are miles away.
They’re laughing at us in New Zealand.
One step forward. Two steps back. Yet Again.
The Wallabies were thrashed by the All Blacks at Eden Park on Saturday night, dashing any hope of a Wallabies revival.
There was considerable optimism surrounding the Wallabies’ last-gasp defeat in Melbourne last week — but all the demons were waiting for the Wallabies in Auckland as the Kiwis cruised to a 40-14 win that flattered the Wallabies with a last-minute try.
Eden Park is a venue at which the All Blacks have not lost since 1994 and not to the Wallabies since 1986. Its dark magic doesn’t look like ending any time soon.
Wallabies great Tim Horan said the Wallabies had been “totally outclassed”.
Acting Wallabies captain James Slipper summed up the mood in the Aussie camp when he said he was “gutted” about his team’s “disappointing” performance.
Wallabies coach Dave Rennie said after the game his team had been “shaded in every area”.
The pressure is building on the coach ahead of next year’s World Cup.
The Kiwi coach needs the Wallabies to produce results during the Spring Tour of Europe, beginning next month, or he faces the very real possibility of losing his position.
The All Blacks led 32-0 in the second half and the match was well and truly over by the time the Wallabies finally cracked the Kiwi defence.
The Wallabies have not beaten the All Blacks on New Zealand soil since 2001.
New Zealand had already secured the famous trophy for the 20th straight year with their controversial 39-37 win last week.
The Wallabies endured absolute heartbreak when they were “robbed” by a controversial referee decision in the final minutes in the Bledisloe opener in Melbourne.
When Bernard Foley was penalised for a delay of game, Aussie playmaker Nic White tore strips of the referee.
Despite the hunger burning in the Wallabies’ guts, it didn’t translate into a clean performance in the return leg.
