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After a nervous start, Australia really settled in and played some real footy, scoring seven tries in the form of both straight, hard running from the backs and physical dominance of the forwards.
In the first 20 minutes, Fiji came out trying to intimidate the Wallabies. They succeeded. Beale, Elsom and Pocock all dropped balls while having “a look”. This was due to the Fijians big hitting, hard running and sometimes illegal play causing 11 handling errors in the first half by the Australians.
However, the Fijians took it too far with a late hit on Giteau, after a Cooper “pop ball” to Horne. This was the turning point in the game and the end of Fiji.
The beginning of the second half saw the Aussies much more fired up. This was evident in the chain reaction that occurred when the forwards started to dominate and go forward by hitting back at the Fijians. This gave Burgess at scrum half better ball which in turn gave Cooper a lot more time to serve the outside backs.
The extra quick and precise ball from Cooper gave the Wallaby back-line room to play the much loved running rugby, leading to two brilliant tries by Ioane, Beale, Mitchell and Cooper in the second half, together with a perfect kicking record and 35 unanswered points by the Aussies.
Overall, after a shaky start and spending most of the first half on the back foot – with a half-time rev up – the Wallabies came back with fire in their hearts that the Fijians could not respond to.
The second half saw brilliant performances by the lightning winger Ioane, new boy Beale and superstar Adam Ashley-Cooper. Sharpe also had a strong game.
However, after a good win in chilly Canberra against a physical Fiji, the real challenge will come next week against England at Subiaco.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.