Rugby Championship marks next phase of Wallabies' redemption arc
Saturday's clash at Ellis Park, beamed into Australia's east coast early on Sunday morning, marks the next phase of the Wallabies' redemption arc which has risen from the pool stage exit of the 2023 World Cup, through this year's valiant British & Irish Lions series defeat and towards a tilt at the Webb Ellis Cup on home soil in 2027.
After they pushed the Lions and prevented a clean sweep in a memorable series that concluded two weeks ago, the Wallabies appear on the up. But South Africa – where the tourists have not won since 2011 – offers a sudden test against the world's best.
That has necessitated a lineup with very much a near-term focus. Injuries in the halves have forced coach Joe Schmidt to first ask No 9 Nic White to delay his international retirement after the Lions series, then parachute fly-half James O'Connor into a Wallabies jersey for the first time since 2022. The starting side is otherwise unchanged from the victory over the Lions in Sydney.
'Our initial thought was going with Ben Donaldson, who'd spent more time with us and played the last 50 minutes of that third Test against the British and Irish Lions,' Schmidt said. 'But we felt that James was best served, and the team was best served, by James getting enough reps during the week and having the time in the saddle.'
It's not clear exactly what Schmidt has against Donaldson, the playmaker who has tumbled down the pecking order behind first Noah Lolesio, then Tom Lynagh, and now a player who played just 377 minutes of Super Rugby this year and is off to Leicester. Ultimately, Donaldson pulled up in training late in the week with an injury, leaving the presence of O'Connor, as Schmidt described, 'fortuitous'.
The throwback halves pairing is appropriate for the start of a competition – known as the Tri Nations until Argentina joined in 2012 – that might soon have to be put out to pasture. Although a new international trophy will likely bring Ireland and France to Australia as part of a standard seven home Test programme next year that might also include the Wallabies' traditional rivals, the Rugby Championship will not be held.
New Zealand and the Springboks are preferring to go it alone and arrange an extended All Blacks tour in South Africa. Beyond that, the 2027 World Cup will compress the usual international window, and a Springboks tour of New Zealand in 2030 will again take precedence over the competition Australia last won in 2015.
But the Wallabies won't have time to check their calendars at Ellis Park on Saturday as they face the world champions. 'I'm expecting that they'll be really strong in the set piece,' Schmidt said. 'Their kick-chase game will be very strong. On any turnover or any bit of space they get, they've got lethal finishers.'
South Africa have batted away Italy and Georgia in warm-up matches, scoring more than 40 points each game. They have lost just twice since lifting the 2023 World Cup – one-point losses to Ireland and Argentina – winning 14 Tests in that period to confirm their place at the summit of rugby union. Two of those came in Perth and Brisbane last year, when the world champions humbled the hosts by a combined score of 63-19.
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But after slippery conditions during the Lions series, the Wallabies are looking forward to the afternoon jaunt in downtown Johannesburg. 'We haven't seen for a number of weeks a really dry, fast deck,' fullback Tom Wright said. 'So it's something to look forward to.'
It's an odd thing to say given Australia haven't won at Ellis Park, the stadium in central Johannesburg that was the site of the 1995 World Cup final, since 1963. However times have clearly changed, and crime concerns and highly-priced tickets have some locals fearing the famous venue won't be filled for a contest that was once appointment viewing but is now – like the Rugby Championship more broadly – just another international fixture.
'You hear about those dates, and it can be the elephant in the room, right?' Wright said of the Wallabies' barren run at Ellis Park. 'So it's been spoken about in terms of how cool it would be to be able to break that drought. But, like, is it any more special than any other game we're preparing for? Not particularly, no.'
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