| Scotland: (5) 15 |
| Tries: Smith, Kinghorn Pen: Kinghorn Con: Kinghorn |
| Australia: (6) 16 |
| Try: Slipper Pens: Foley (3) Con: Foley |
Scotland lost to Australia in the Autumn Nations Series’ opening match. Blair Kinghorn missed a crucial penalty that would have allowed them to win.
Ollie Smith crossed the line for Scotland in his second appearance. But Bernard Foley kicked the Wallabies to a 6-5 half-time advantage.
Kinghorn’s penalty and converted try put the Scots up 15-6, but James Slipper’s score as well as five more Foley points turned the tide in favor of the visitors.
Kinghorn failed to find the goal and the home side would have had a win with a last-minute penalty.
Fiji faces Scotland next weekend. Australia takes on France in Paris.
The preparations for this autumn series were dominated by two massive calls from Gregor Townsend – one was to drop Finn Russell completely, and the other was to remove Stuart Hogg from the captaincy to give it to Jamie Ritchie.
Russell and Hogg weren’t available to play in this match, as only players based in Scotland were eligible to Townsend. The match fell outside of the Test window.
Australia’s search to be consistent has been as difficult for Dave Rennie than it has been for Townsend. However, Australia’s first foray into enemy territory was rewarded immediately with the first try.
Kinghorn’s backs move was flawless and Smith got through the gap. While Smith might have used the overlap to his advantage, Kinghorn danced his way to his try line.
Foley, who was the man who broke Scottish hearts by scoring a late penalty in 2015’s World Cup quarter-final quarter-final, made a retort to make it 5-3.
Australia had won the territory battle within the first quarter. However, their progress was stopped by Ritchie’s expertise and the team-mates at the breakdown. Just as they were making their way into the Scottish 22, four times were the Wallabies turned over.
The Scots lost a three point advantage and ran for the corner to find more. Kinghorn sent a stunning long miss-pass towards Sione Tiipilotu. But with the try line at his mercies, the Glasgow centre let him lose the ball and the chance. As the Scots tried for a second attempt, Glen Young was immediately held up.
Andrew Kellaway looked to win the race to the loose soccer ball, but Smith was able to swoop in to save the day.
Foley scored from the tee again at half-time to push the Wallabies one step ahead at the break.
Although it was strangely quiet inside Murrayfield, the crowd was moved to their feet by Scotland’s return to the front in the second half.
Mark Bennett’s big hit in the midfield made it possible for the ball to fly. Kinghorn ran ahead, displayed a great footballing skill and hacked at the cover defense to score.
Kinghorn has been the focus of so much attention since Russell’s shock omission. There were also signs that Kinghorn is moving away from his ‘L’ plates and becoming an international 10.
To make the score 15-6, he took a penalty. The Scots almost reached the Australia line with a break by Duhan van der Merwe, but Grant Gilchrist threw the ball away as he tried to hit his way to victory. Young was also sin-binned in the same play for an illegal clearout, which provided encouragement to the visitors.
We saw Jack Dempsey’s Scotland debut at the hour mark. Recent changes to eligibility rules mean that the Glasgow number eight can now switch countries even though he has won 14 caps for Australia.
Dempsey’s Scotland bow was a strange feeling, but his mind would have swung into gear quickly. Dempsey was on the pitch before his old team-mates crossed the whitewash. A period of sustained pressure ended when Slipper dived.
The match was still struggling to find a rhythm. At the 70 minute mark, the penalty count was at 26. 14 of them were against Scotland. Foley scored the last of these penalties to push the Wallabies back into the lead.
Scotland needed to find a solution immediately, and under severe pressure, a penalty was imposed of 45m.
Kinghorn may have been the lucky one, considering the importance of his role in the match’s build-up. The clock was ticking towards the 80 minute mark and Kinghorn’s big moment arrived, but the fly-half stumbled his lines and pulled his kick wide of his posts.
The game was over. Scotland may have won, but it didn’t. Sometimes test rugby can be brutal.
Scotland: Ollie Smith, Darcy Graham, Mark Bennett, Sione Tuipulotu, Duhan van der Merwe, Blair Kinghorn, Ali Price; Pierre Schoeman, Dave Cherry, Zander Fagerson, Sam Skinner, Grant Gilchrist, Jamie Ritchie (capt), Hamish Watson, Matt Fagerson.
Replacements: George Turner, Jamie Bhatti, WP Nel, Glen Young, Jack Dempsey, George Horne, Ross Thompson, Damien Hoyland.
Australia: Banks, Kellaway, Ikitau, Paisami, Wright, Foley, McDermott; Slipper, Porecki, Alaalatoa, Frost, Neville, Holloway, Hooper, Valetini
Alternatives: Fainga’a, Gibbon and Tupou, Hanigan and Gleeson. White, Lolesio, Campbell