Australia survive card chaos to edge South Africa 42-38 in Perth
Australia beat South Africa 42-38 at Perth Stadium on Sunday after a finish so chaotic they were briefly down to 11 men.
The Wallabies led 24-17 at half-time and stretched that to a 25-point cushion with 16 minutes left, only to survive a furious Springbok comeback to win the one-off Test in Perth, according to BBC Sport.
Australia scored five tries. Centre Len Ikitau grabbed two, with Ben Donaldson, captain Harry Wilson and winger Max Jorgensen also crossing. A try is worth five points for grounding the ball over the opposition line. Scrum-half Ryan Lonergan added the rest with the boot, landing four conversions — the follow-up kicks for two extra points — and three penalties.
South Africa, who arrived in Perth as world champions, kept punching back. Their points came from tries by Johan Grobbelaar, Edwill van der Merwe, Morne van den Berg and Ox Nche, plus a penalty try, which is seven points awarded automatically by the referee for foul play that stops a certain score.
The visitors had made 13 changes to their starting XV for this match, per Reuters, and that reshuffled side looked out of the contest for an hour. Then the cards started coming.
Italian referee Andrea Piardi sent four Australians to the sin-bin in a nine-minute spell. A yellow card means ten minutes off the field, with no replacement allowed. Wilson went in the 68th minute, Lonergan in the 71st, Joseph-Aukuso Sua'ali'i in the 73rd and Hunter Paisami in the 77th. The overlap left Australia with 11 players on the pitch at one stage, and South Africa cashed in to close a 25-point gap to four.
What makes this stand out is the nerve it took at the end. Tired legs, gaps everywhere, and the world champions smelling an impossible comeback. Australia had to make tackle after tackle with a broken defensive line and find a way to kill the clock without giving away the penalty that would have lost it.
For fans, this means bragging rights and a reminder of how quickly Test rugby can swing. Australia looked fluent and ruthless for an hour at Perth Stadium on 27 September, as listed by ABC News, then had to show pure courage to get over the line.
