| Australia (8) 15 |
| Tries: Nawaqanitawase, Foketi Cons: Donaldson Pens: Donaldson |
| Fiji (12) 22 |
| Tries: Tuisova Cons: Kuruvoli Pens: Kuruvoli 4, Lomani |
Fiji beat Australia for simply the third time of their historical past as they blew Pool C vast open with an exhilarating win on the Rugby World Cup.
Fantastic kicking from Simione Kuruvoli put Fiji 12-8 up at half-time earlier than Josua Tuisova crossed after the restart.
Lalakai Foketi went over late on to chop the deficit to 22-15 however Eddie Jones’ aspect couldn’t mount a comeback.
Fiji’s first-ever World Cup win over the Wallabies strikes them above their opponents into second in Pool C.
The pair are locked collectively on six factors after two matches with Fiji forward due to their head-to-head document.
With simply the highest two advancing to the quarter-finals, Fiji’s match in Saint-Etienne was essential.
The Flying Fijians had misplaced their opening pool sport 32-26 towards Wales and would have confronted an uphill battle to succeed in the knockouts with a second consecutive defeat.
Victory appeared unlikely; that they had final overwhelmed Australia 69 years in the past and had misplaced 17 of their previous 18 Checks towards the Wallabies.
However they began with management, with two Kuruvoli penalties giving them a 6-3 lead.
A fast line-out after an Australian 50-20 arrange Mark Nawaqanitawase to cross unopposed, placing the two-time winners in entrance towards the run of play.
However two extra Kuruvoli penalties helped Fiji edge to a 12-8 half-time lead.
Two minutes after the restart, Australia didn’t cope with a routine field kick and Tuisova latched on to the unfastened ball earlier than diving over within the nook.
And the lead was prolonged to 22-8 by a Sixty fifth-minute Kuruvoli penalty, though the scrum-half did miss an extra kick, which might have given his aspect a 15-point benefit.
Australian Kuruvoli squeezed over with 12 minutes remaining to arrange a grandstand end, but it surely was to be their final rating as Fiji defended resolutely within the closing levels.
Fiji’s victory was their fifteenth over a tier one nation and their second in three weeks, having overwhelmed England in a warm-up fixture in August.
Kuruvoli did miss a last-minute penalty that will have denied Australia a shedding bonus level.
However the Fijians, who face Georgia subsequent after per week off, are in an excellent place to succeed in the knockouts of the World Cup for only a third time.
Australia ill-disciplined in defeat
Australia have by no means didn’t advance from the pool stage at a World Cup.
However, with pool leaders Wales to play subsequent week, they’re in severe hazard of recording their worst-ever end.
Coming into Sunday’s match, that they had recorded 15 successive wins over Fiji. Because the begin of 1985, that they had performed and overwhelmed the Fijians 9 instances, scoring at the least 31 factors in eight of these victories.
They performed this sport with out captain Will Skelton who was unable to shake off a calf damage earlier than the fixture.
And in entrance of a boistrous crowd in Saint-Etienne, they had been laboured in possession, conceding 17 penalties to Fiji’s 4.
The Wallabies have misplaced their second match within the pool levels twice earlier than, to Eire in 2011 and Wales in 2019. On each events, they rallied and superior as runners-up.
