It was a close call, but Australia have come away with a three-point win over the Barbarians despite their opposition leading for much of the match.
» Click here to read the full match report
Final score
Wallabies 31
Barbarians 28
The Wallabies and the Barbarians are set to play a one-off game on Saturday afternoon at Allianz Stadium in Sydney, Australia. Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of the match, starting from 3pm AEDT.
It would be easy to dismiss this match. The Rugby Championship was finished a few weeks ago. The Bledisloe is wrapped up for another year. The Spring Tour is just around the corner.
When you look at the Wallabies squad too the vast majority of first choice players are being rested – only Folau and Dempsey are involved from the team that beat the All Blacks in Brisbane recently.
Let’s face it as well – are the Barbarians really going to put up much of a battle? The last time they beat the Wallabies was way back in the mid-1970s.
So that’s it isn’t it? Forgone conclusion – an easy win for the Wallabies, nothing at stake and so many big name players focused on packing for the north.
Well as with all Barbarian games, the stories might be harder to see than a major international, but they are definitely there. And with this clash there are some really juicy stories to enjoy too!
Starting from off the field we’ve got the return of Alan Jones to the spotlight in Australian rugby as coach of the BaaBaas.
He might be getting on but his passion for showing that his way is the best way hasn’t dulled in the slightest.
He’ll be keen to show that his approach is still relevant in today’s modern game and it’d put a big smile on his face to show up the Wallabies in Sydney.
On the field is where there are plenty of players to watch. For many this is a genuine trial game and a chance to get their name either on the Tour sheet for this Spring or on the “Ones to Watch” list that most likely sits in a Cheika notebook somewhere.
The amazing/frustrating/overrated Quade Cooper is starting at No.10 for the BaaBaas and while the exhibition style of the team and the game suits his natural talent, he’ll be keen to show off that he has grown as an all-round player and should be heading north with the Wallabies in a week.
The giant Lopeti Timani has a chance to show Cheika that his poor Super Rugby season is just a memory and that he’s the natural successor to the Japan-bound McMahon. From a pure dimensions point of view, Timani should be an absolute wrecking ball but he needs to put theory into practice on Saturday.
Also in the back row but playing for the BaaBaas is the Force’s player of the season – Isi Naisarani – and while he needs another 12 months to be eligible for the Wallabies, he’ll be keen to show Cheika that the Aussie #6 shirt has his name on it.
For the Wallabies there are a couple of interesting stories to pay attention to. Firstly the Reds fly half – Duncan Paia’aua – has a chance to show that he is capable of challenging Foley for the first team spot.
While the pairing of Foley and Beale has been developing well this season, the Australian depth at No.10 is not great and Paia’aua has a great chance to help calm Cheika’s fears that Foley gets injured.
Similarly Hunt has to take advantage of the fact that Folau is not going on the Spring tour. Hunt should start at No.15 and could well have a nice run of four to five games over the coming weeks to show that he can offer something different to Folau.
It’s not about kicking Folau out of the team but if Hunt can show he’s worthy of a full time starting spot then it might get Cheika to think about whether he moves Folau into the centres, to the wing or leaves him at the back and slots Hunt in the frontline attack.
Add to all of this nuance the fact that there should be plenty of attacking rugby on display and it promises to be a cracking afternoon of rugby.
Prediction
Despite the large number of first choice players being rested it’s impossible to think that the Wallabies won’t pick up the win in this one.
Australia to win by 20
Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of the match, starting at 3pm AEDT on Saturday morning.
double agent
Guest
Alan Jones looking forward to the after game showers. Seriously?
double agent
Guest
The YC's were harsh in an exhibition match with less than 10 to go. Especially Quade's.
double agent
Guest
Realistically Meakes never had a hope. Great SR season but physically he is way off test standard.
double agent
Guest
Agree Steve.
double agent
Guest
What?
double agent
Guest
I love Naiyaravoro his biggest problem is he is slow off the mark. He is like a B-Double. He can go 100kmh no problem just takes a while to get there. In test footy you don't have a while. You've got a second.
Adsa
Guest
Ready had a better game than Uelese, Moore came on and looked better than Ready.
Olly
Guest
Palu was the best forward on the park. McCalman will be 8 and Timani to 6 with Hooper at 7. I like Banks but he is not run on yet. Hunt might be 15 but I would not be surprised to see Hodge at 15 with Hunt on the bench. It is asking alot of Hunt to walk into 15 in the north. 2nd row is now a bit of a problem. If Coleman goes down we are stuffed.
Mr.Media
Roar Rookie
Dodgy refereeing, and the line judges, made this game a sham. But otherwise it was a good game.
Oblonsky‘s Other Pun
Roar Guru
I totally get what you mean, but Dave, that would rule out McCalman as the only SR game he played was the final game? The reason we don't do it is because we unfortunately just don't have the depth of talent to be able to do so. Even the Saffas picked Pollard as they just don't have the depth. Also, the Kiwis played Ben Smith and Coles despite them missing a decent part of the season with concussions. You're right though, it's a tough balance to strike, and again, I totally see your point.
DaveR
Guest
Hunt is so underdone it showed badly today. Its hard to believe how he was considered given he has had most of the SR season out. I am reminded of the general NZ rules for picking ABs: must have played the whole season at the highest level, in your preferred position, without significant injury, to have a chance. Why cant we follow those sort of requirements?
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Match Report Australia have beaten The Barbarians by 31 to 28 points at Alliance Stadium in Sydney in a game that will perhaps be spoken about for the wrong reasons in the days to come. The game itself stuttered along for most of the 80 minutes with neither side really able to get into their rhythm. For the Wallabies this will be more concerning – while it wasn’t their first choice team they would have expected to be able to take better control of this match and not rely upon so many errors from opposition and yellow cards to help them out. Much was spoken of this match as a trial of sorts for some to try and play their way into Cheika’s Spring Tour squad. No one player really covered themselves in glory but McCalman, Jones and Timani all had good games although with Jones being based in Europe for another year he won’t be eligible for a while. From the Barbarian side Quade Cooper certainly caught the eye. His chip kick for the BaaBaas last try was perfectly executed but overall it still feels like Cheika doesn’t rate him enough to start ahead of Foley and he’s not the future of the Wallabies so why include him? Instead Paia'aua will be the understudy for Foley – he scored twice and had a pretty good game without having the full control that he would have ideally liked. Perhaps with more of a chance than Cooper of making the Wallabies at some point is Banks – he played well including scoring a try and assisting in Naiyaravoro’s second. He’s arguably not quite right for the wing but could offer a good option at #15 with Folau not touring. Speaking of the full back spot, Hunt’s first game back in a Wallabies shirt wasn’t as good as he’d have hoped but he should still get plenty of game time over the coming weeks. He never stopped running and it’ll be interesting to see how Foley and Beale can bring him into the play with some nice inside balls as he comes in at pace. On the flip side players like Hanigan, Meakes and Kerevi didn’t play well. Hanigan’s effort never fades but his ability to make an impact continues to be missing in action. Kerevi’s mis read of a pass led to a nice break from Naiyaravoro who then put Banks in for his try and showed his ongoing struggles to dominate at the upper levels. Sadly for the Aussies the real bad news is that Dempsey and Tui both went off with injuries that looked pretty bad – Dempsey couldn’t even walk and needed two medics to get him to the side line. We await the official report on how long they are out for but it doesn’t look good. Unfortunately the referee had far too much impact on the game today which is especially sad in a Barbarians game. There were a lot of penalties especially against the touring side which slowed the game down but the real issue was when he pulled out two yellow cards late in the game that saw Naiyaravoro and Cooper go to the bin. At that point the BaaBaas were actually ahead and it was building to a great finish. With a two man advantage though the Wallabies were able to get the final score and the win. Neither card was really needed and the boos from the crowd will ring in the ref’s ears for a while. Of course he has to keep the players safe but with 10 minutes to go it was not necessary to bin two Barbarians. So that’s the last time we’ll see the Wallabies in Australia for a while and it was another win on the record which is important. But the game has thrown up a number of questions and challenges for Cheika as he looks to firm up his touring side and he’ll be sweating on the news about Dempsey and Tui. Thanks for joining us here and look forward to hearing what you think about the game.
Fionn
Guest
Nah, I was kidding, mate :) . I am basically pinning all my hopes of the Brumbies playing good attacking rugby on Banks continuing his development and Lealiifano coming back strong. If Lance signs with the Rebels then other teams will feel very, very nervous about conceding penalties. Lance is very accurate closer in, and if Hodge can improve his accuracy it might be a bit like playing against the 09 Boss against Frans and Morne Steyn.
Oliver Matthews
Expert
I meant that Folau and Dempsey were the only starters in Bledisloe 3 that then started today as well. I think you make an interesting point - I think today did highlight that there are some depth issues that the Aussies are going to need to figure out if they are going to go well in 2019.
DaveR
Guest
Spot on Fionn. McCalman is a true No 8 who always plays tighter in to the scrum/forwards than others of his time. I think of him as a more traditional No 8, which Australia hasnt had for a while. If today is anything to go on, he is showing no effects of the shoulder injury. A natural choice to help back row, particularly if Dempsey has a problem.
JamesH Dunedin
Roar Rookie
Oh my apologies, I think I got Lance and Banks mixed up!
Oblonsky‘s Other Pun
Roar Guru
Brumbies, mate! Don't ever joke to me about that again :P haha. The Rebels already have a very good backline between Genia, Stirzaker, Lance (word on the street is that he is about to sign with them), Meakes (same as Lance), Hodge, Naivalu, Koroibete and rumours of DHP being about to sign with them also. Brumbies have Powell, Lucas, Hawera, Lucas, Kuridrani, Speight, Muirhead, Dargaville and Banks, so not too bad either.
JamesH Dunedin
Roar Rookie
Excellent. Banks is playing for the rebels next year? The rebels will have a very good backline if so
Oblonsky‘s Other Pun
Roar Guru
Excellently. Scored one try, set up another by drawing in Folau and the passing to big TN with a clear run for the line after putting himself in space so that Quade could set up a 60m try with a chip kick and could have possibly scored another if TN had passed to his right when he made a break in the first half. Hope he starts as Wallaby fullback against Japan. I'll keep saying it, the next Chris Latham.
JamesH Dunedin
Roar Rookie
How did Banks play?