Edinburgh: Wallabies five-eighth Bernard Foley says coming from behind to grind out a win – even in somewhat fortunate circumstances – will be invaluable for the side’s confidence before an upcoming clash against a French outfit who according to coach Dave Rennie “play zero rugby down their own end of the field”.
In the 80th minute at Murrayfield on Saturday evening (Sunday morning AEDT), Australia were a kick away from becoming the first Wallabies team in history to lose four consecutive Tests to Scotland.
Instead, an errant last-minute penalty attempt from nervous No.10 Blair Kinghorn ensured Australia hung on for a tenacious 16-15 victory after trailing by nine points heading into the final quarter of the match.
Wallabies players and staff blasted a rousing rendition of Advance Australia Fair in the sheds after full-time with debutants Jock Campbell and Langi Gleeson in the middle of a huddle alongside family members.
It was a dearly needed win for a Wallabies group with a 3-6 record this year before their opening match of the spring tour and a result that relieves pressure on coach Dave Rennie.
“It’s massive, especially the first one of a long tour,” Foley said. “To get a win like that and get that belief … it gets us into the tour.
Australian players celebrate with the Hopetoun trophy after beating Scotland. Credit:PA
“I think the ability to find ways to win is probably something we haven’t had. Finding a way to win away from home when things weren’t going our way and down by nine points, to work it out and stay in the battle and enjoy the contest, was probably the most pleasing aspect of our game.”
Foley, in particular, will enjoy the success given what happened in the Bledisloe Cup opener in Melbourne where Australia snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.
This was Foley’s first Wallabies victory since a World Cup warm-up in 2019 against Samoa.
Next up is world No.2 France, who many believe are favourites for next year’s World Cup that they will host.
“We know they’re going to kick a lot,” Rennie said. “They play zero rugby down their end of the field but it does create opportunities. We’re going to have to look after the ball well. They prefer to play without the ball and they’re very similar to South Africa. It’s a similar mindset playing them [compared to Scotland].”
Foley echoed Rennie’s view that it would be a game with plenty of kicks where territory would be at a premium.
“They’re smart with their kicking,” Foley said. “I’ve actually done a bit with their kicking coach Vlok Cilliers. We understand they’ll come with a pretty strong tactic to disrupt us again.
“You come on these tours and you’ve got to do the basics well and apply pressure by not letting up with errors and not letting other teams get into the contest.”
Foley, whose 71st-minute penalty goal put the Wallabies ahead, admitted he did think back to his famous last-minute three-pointer in the 2015 World Cup quarter-final that ultimately booted Scotland out of the tournament.
Bernard Foley in action for Australia against Scotland.Credit:Getty
“I actually thought it was in a pretty similar spot,” Foley said. “We discussed that we had good momentum but wanted to take the kick and to go ahead. We knew it would be big in the context of the game.”
However, the victory was far from perfect and Rennie was quick to point that out.
At times, Australia’s attack was clunky, while their breakdown work was inaccurate.
The Wallabies turned the ball over three times more than Scotland (12 to nine) and no error was punished more than Foley’s three minutes after half-time.
His knock-on in Scotland’s half resulted in a fabulous try moments later down the other end from Kinghorn.
A repeat of that against France could turn into an ugly scoreline.
“It was just a bit of timing … it was poor from me,” Foley said. “I’ve got to give myself a bit more time to execute, catch and get the pass away. I was probably under pressure trying to do too much. It was about controlling my feet a bit better.
“We probably gave up too much possession with dropped balls or being clunky with our execution.”
The Wallabies caught a late flight back to Saint-Etienne after their match in Edinburgh and will begin preparations for their first match against France since July 2021.
