Wallabies apologise as pressure mounts on Schmidt
Darren Walton |
Crestfallen captain Harry Wilson has apologised to disillusioned fans after the Wallabies ended a disastrous spring tour with a damaging 48-33 loss to France in Paris.
Despite a vastly improved showing, after insipid displays against England, Italy and Ireland, the Wallabies have now endured a winless four-Test tour of Europe for the first time since 1958.
Pressure continues to mount on beleaguered coach Joe Schmidt after his battered side also became the first Australian outfit to lose 10 Tests in a calendar year as the Kiwi mentor’s winning percentage dipped below 40 per cent.
“Sorry about the end of the year. Obviously it’s been such a disappointing tour,” Wilson told Stan Sport.
“To lose four games here, we’re hurting.
“But the one thing, the boys have been working so hard. We’ve been working hard at training, the prep going behind the scenes, the boys haven’t wavered, and I’m really proud of the team for keep fronting up every week.
“The results have been hurting us, and I hope everyone knows at home how much it has been hurting us because we just want to be winning.”
The Wallabies’ dead-rubber victory over the touring British and Irish Lions and a giddy first take-down of the world champion Springboks on the South African high veldt since 1963 feel light years away.
Les Kiss is contracted to take over from Schmidt after the inaugural Nations Championship next July, leaving the Queensland Reds coach little more than a year to ready the Wallabies for the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia.
Calls for Schmidt to fall on his sword will inevitably grow louder after his winning strike rate slumped to 39 per cent – the second-worst for a Wallabies coach of 20 Tests or more in almost 60 years.
Only Dave Rennie’s 36 per cent return is worse and he was promptly fired by Rugby Australia after a similarly gloomy 2022 spring tour.
But Schmidt again urged long-suffering Wallabies fans to keep the faith.
“We’re disappointed we didn’t finish with the victory that I know you would have all loved to see, but the players have made a heck of an effort,” he said.
“There’s 15 Tests in 22 weeks with the amount of travel they’ve had. I just admire the way they have dusted themselves off and gone again. And it wasn’t for lack of effort tonight. A little bit more execution.
“They will get better. So please don’t give up on them.”
The sorry stats and debate around whether Schmidt should carry on will overshadow an encouraging turnaround from the Wallabies at Stade de France on Saturday night (Sunday AEDT).
After going to the break locked at 19-19, the battling tourists – led by a some powerhouse efforts from the forward pack – threatened a shock win over the reigning European champions.
Props Taniela Tupou and Angus Bell and two-try hooker Matt Faessler were enormous, and Wilson typically inspirational.
Alas, the Wallabies once again proved little more than a 60-minute outfit as Les Bleus, inspired by electric winger and 2025 world player of the year nominee Louis Bielle-Biarrey, ran away with the match with three tries in the closing 18 minutes.
Once again, the Wallabies didn’t help themselves with ill-discipline, conceding 10 second-half penalties and losing flanker Tom Hooper to the sin bin at a vital stage with the Test on the line.
Despite the latest collapse, Schmidt remains upbeat.
“I think this (tour) will actually stand to them next year and the year beyond. I really do,” he defiantly said.
“It will be tough to take at the moment. We’re all pretty disappointed because we know how much support we’ve had from home and we were desperate tonight to give them something to cheer about.
“I hope they saw some promise and the effort, even if the execution wasn’t quite there.”
The Wallabies needed to win by 16 points to snatch an all-important top-six seeding for next month’s 2027 World Cup draw.
Instead the 15-point loss will leave the tournament hosts staring down a sudden-death round-of-16 showdown with one of global heavyweights like South Africa, New Zealand, France, Ireland or England.
AAP
