men’s
international
The Les Kiss tenure as Wallabies head coach commenced with a tense 35-32 victory over Japan, as the away side narrowly held on despite a red card shown to lock Miles Amatosero.
In his first match at the helm, Les Kiss endured an anxious debut while his team overcame several chaotic moments and a sending-off to secure the 35-32 win against Japan in Osaka.
The away team fell behind in the opening stages, but just when they seemed poised to regain composure and pull ahead, they were forced down to 14 players for a 20-minute period following Amatosero’s dismissal.
An opportunity arose for the Japanese side, led by Eddie Jones, who were eager to snap a seven-match losing streak against their opponents.
Nevertheless, the Wallabies fought through oppressive 30-degree temperatures to secure back-to-back Test victories and a debut win for Kiss, despite an erratic performance.
An action-packed opening quarter-hour saw Japan draw first blood when elegant flyhalf Ryunosuke Ito carved through an unaligned defense. This followed an incident where Wallabies flanker Fraser McReight took a quick tap from a penalty in his own territory, only to cough up possession on the halfway line with a risky pass.
Australia answered back swiftly through Harry Potter, who cut back inside on a sharp angle to dot down after the Wallabies swung the ball from one sideline to the other.
Flyhalf Declan Meredith struggled with his clearing kicks, failing to find deep touch and allowing the Japanese team to sustain their offensive pressure.
Gradually, the touring side found their rhythm; second-rower Josh Canham secured a penalty, which led to a well-worked try for Tom Wright during a rare moment of offensive fluidity.
Australia seemed destined to extend their lead with a rolling maul set up in the right corner.
However, the hosts successfully disrupted the drive, and a reckless moment from Amatosero not only spoiled the scoring chance but also left Australia short-handed for the next 20 minutes.
The second-rower, known for his fiery temperament following a preseason altercation with a NSW Waratahs colleague, kept his left arm tucked as he went to clear out Japanese skipper Warner Dearns.
With Dearns shifted off-balance by another defender, Amatosero’s shoulder made direct contact with the head of the Hurricanes Super Rugby standout.
After the yellow card was upgraded to a 20-minute red under the trial rules, Japan needed only a moment to exploit the overlap, piercing the Wallabies’ ruck defense to level the score at the break via a Faulua Makisi try.
Early in the second half, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii used some deft footwork to deliver a superb offload that put Max Jorgensen over, allowing the short-handed Wallabies to reclaim the lead.
Following an exchange of tries, Japan slotted a penalty goal to reduce the deficit to six points just before Australia returned to a full complement of 15 players.
Handling errors continued to plague the visitors, and another penalty allowed Japan to claw within three points as the match entered its final 20 minutes.
A timely penalty eased the pressure on Australia, and reserve tighthead Taniela Tupou crashed over directly beneath the uprights, pushing the advantage to 10 points with only ten minutes remaining.
With eight minutes left, Ben Donaldson came off the bench to play fullback, shifting Suaalii to the wing as midfielder Isaac Henry made his debut as Wallaby number 999.
Japan refused to surrender, earning a scrum penalty and launching successive attacks on the tryline before Dearns eventually forced his way over with two minutes left on the clock.
The home team retained possession as they hunted for a late match-winning score, but a knock-on in the dying seconds sealed a tense, if unpolished, victory for Australia.
