IRELAND’S RUGBY WORLD CUP group was blown wide open last night, as their Pool C rivals Australia were handed a major reality check by lowly Samoa in an international test at Sydney.
An inspired performance from the islanders saw the little-fancied Samoans outscore the Wallabies by four tries to two as they ran out 32-23 winners to shock a 30,000 attendance at the ANZ Stadium.
The hosts were admittedly not at full strength – tinkering with their line-up ahead of their Tri-Nations opener against South Africa next Saturday – but the surprise defeat will rattle the Aussies ahead of an intense few months of internationals.
The Tri-Nations series only ends a fortnight before the World Cup – so the defeat could hardly have been more badly timed for the Australians, who square off against Declan Kidney’s side in their second World Cup fixture on September 17.
Comments (1 Comment)