In a thrilling, chaotic rugby union test match played out in Perth, the Australian Wallabies produced one of the most dramatic wins of the recent international calendar, holding off a late comeback from back-to-back world champion South Africa to secure a 42-38 victory, even after being reduced to just 11 fit players on the pitch in the final 10 minutes. The match also came with an official announcement confirming that Australia will kick off its 2027 Rugby World Cup hosting duties with an opening match against Hong Kong, to be held right here in Perth.
The Springboks, fresh off a win over New Zealand in Baltimore just days prior, rotated their squad heavily, making 13 changes to their starting line-up. Even with the sweeping adjustments, the visitors remained a formidable force: their second row pairing alone boasted a combined 240 international test caps, highlighting the incredible depth of the world champions’ roster. Entering the match, the Wallabies carried significant narrative weight: one year out from hosting the 2027 World Cup, and 12 months removed from a lopsided home defeat to the British & Irish Lions, the home side was hungry to prove its progress against elite competition.
The match got off to a tense, evenly matched start, with both sides trading opening penalty points. South Africa struck first for a try, with hooker Johan Grobbelaar driving over the line following a powerful forward maul to put the world champions on the board first. The Wallabies responded quickly, applying sustained pressure in the Springboks’ 22 that resulted in center Len Ikitau crossing from one meter out to level the scores. Ikitau notched his second try just minutes later, capitalizing on a messy misjudgment of a floating high kick from South Africa to grab the lead for the hosts.
The lead would not last long, however. South Africa struck back with a blistering counterattack, spinning the ball wide quickly to winger Edwill van der Merwe, who finished the stunning break with a try in the corner to cut Australia’s lead. Before halftime, the Wallabies reclaimed their advantage through a brilliant display of patient phase play: 14 consecutive, sharp phases moved the ball from one side of the pitch to the other, opening up space for fly-half Ben Donaldson to score untouched in the corner. Going into the break, Australia held a narrow but deserved lead.
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus wasted no time unleashing his side’s depth, making all eight of his allowed substitutions early in the second half with his side trailing by 10 points. Even with the fresh legs, Australia continued to dominate the contest. Captain Harry Wilson had an early try ruled out after his foot was found to be in touch, but he burrowed over from close range just seconds later to extend the Wallabies’ lead. When South Africa fumbled a turnover deep in their own half, young Australian winger Max Jorgensen sprinted the full length of the pitch to score a spectacular solo try, pushing the score to 42-17 with just 16 minutes left to play, putting the result seemingly out of reach.
What followed was a chaotic turn of events that no one could have predicted. First, Wilson was sent to the sin bin for a minor infringement, and South Africa was awarded a penalty try, with Australian scrum-half Ryan Lonergan also yellow-carded for the infringement, dropping the Wallabies to just 13 men. Van der Merwe nearly scored another try for the visitors off a perfectly placed cross-field kick, but he dropped the ball just before grounding it, wasting a golden chance to cut the lead.
The sin-bin count continued to climb for the hosts: winger Joseph-Aukuso Sua’ali’i was also sent off temporarily to leave Australia with just 12 men on the pitch, and Springbok replacement Morne van den Berg scrambled over for a try to cut the deficit to 11 points. In the 77th minute, the Wallabies looked to have put the game to bed when Tom Wright intercepted a pass and raced away for a try, but the score was ruled out due to a dangerous tackle in the build-up, and center Hunter Paisami was issued a fourth yellow card, dropping the Wallabies to just 11 men with more than three minutes still left to play.
With massive amounts of open space to attack, South Africa crossed again through prop Ox Nche, cutting Australia’s lead to just four points. But as the Springboks lined up for the final restart, the final whistle blew, and the 11-man Wallabies held on for a historic victory.
The thrilling win comes as Australia prepares for its turn hosting the global rugby event, with tournament organizers confirming on the same day that the 2027 World Cup will open in Perth with a match between host nation Australia and Hong Kong China.