‘Got it wrong': Wallabies left heartbroken as ‘terrible' call costs Aussies historic victory

News.com.au

3 days ago

The Wallabies have been denied an upset win over the British and Irish Lions in heartbreaking and controversial fashion after the visitors scored a last-gasp try to claim a thrilling 29-26 victory.
Hugo Keenan went over for the Lions in the 79th minute to win it, only for Australia to desperately appeal the try, claiming Jac Morgan had made contact with the head of Carlo Tizzano at the breakdown in the lead-up.
Referee Andrea Piardi, however, deemed there to be no foul play in the lead-up, much to the frustration of Stan Sport's Morgan Turinui in commentary.
'The referees were too weak to give it (the penalty),' he said.
'You cannot hit a guy in the back of the neck to save the ball who is legally jackling. The referees have got it wrong. It has cost the Wallabies survival in the series... a terrible decision that decides this match.'
You can watch the controversial moment in the player above.
A shattered skipper Harry Wilson said after the game he was 'probably not in the right emotion to speak' about the decision.
Coach Joe Schmidt, meanwhile, said the Wallabies may have got a 'different decision on another day and another time'.
'I think it was described as arriving at the same time and we can all see that's not the case,' he said.
'We can all see clear contact with the back of the neck.
Lions great Martin Johnson said after the game that he agreed with the call, arguing 'you have to be very, very sure to change the game on the ref's decision'.
Former Wallabies skipper Michael Hooper, on the other hand, said if the incident happened in the first minute 'it probably gets awarded'.
Turinui, meanwhile, only delivered an even more scathing assessment of the decision when pressed on the matter again post-game.
'That decision is 100 per cent completely wrong,' he said on Stan Sport.
Lions blatant foul play is rewarded by northern hemisphere officials … a shameful end #Wallabies
— Gray Connolly (@GrayConnolly) July 26, 2025
A very sad night for rugby when once again refereeing destroys a great game and turns people away from rugby in Australia.
“Both players arriving at the same time. So no foul play.�
Except one player cleaned out the other with a shoulder to the head. #lionsvswallabies
— Tim Ayliffe (@TimJAyliffe) July 26, 2025
That is a rubbish decision. Clearly foul play. That’s a red card in super rugby.
— Mark Gottlieb (@MarkGottlieb) July 26, 2025
A truly brutal way to lose a series for the Wallabies.
— Jonathan Drennan (@JWDrennan) July 26, 2025
'The referee got it wrong. His two assistant referees got it wrong. The TMO got it wrong Joel Jutge, the head of the referees, is out here on a junket. He needs to haul those referees in and ask for a please explain... the refereeing group, when it counted, got the match-defining decision completely wrong. It's a point of law. It's in black and white. It's not about bias.'
UK view - Wallabies player 'dived'
British media predictably didn't agree with Australian pundits who believe the Wallabies were dudded by the no call when Jac Morgan made contact with the head of Carlo Tizzano.
UK rugby journalists accused Tizzano of diving and exaggerating contact by flying backwards.
The Sunday Times' rugby correspondent Stephen Jones said on X: 'Carlo Tizzano, hit by Jac Morgan at the very end, did himself no favours by a backwards dive and appeal to the ref.'
The Telegraph's Oliver Brown wrote a column titled: 'Stop moaning Australia, your player dived.'
Brown wrote: 'In the end, the verdict was clear: the Australian had tried to buy a penalty, falling backwards with an exaggeration of which an Italian centre-forward would have been proud.
Tizzano clearly milked the incident, collapsing with a melodrama that could easily have persuaded some officials to chalk off Keenan's try.
It would have been hugely unjust for the series-clinching score to be ruled out on the basis of one player's histrionics.
Brown described Tizzano's reaction as 'staggering back, clutching his head as if in mortal agony'.
One viewer wrote on X: 'Tizzano should be facing a ban for that. Shameful behaviour, diving and rolling around like a toddler.'
Australia needed victory at the Melbourne Cricket Ground to keep the three-Test series alive after losing the opener in Brisbane 27-19.
That desperation showed from the opening minute, with Will Skelton and Rob Valentini adding some much-needed gusto up front for an Australia team that was outmuscled in the opener.
Fly-half Tom Lynagh was also doing his part to help the Wallabies win the field position battle early with some nice clearances, while he also added a pair of penalty goals to give the hosts a 6-0 lead after 15 minutes.
The Lions eventually hit the scoreboard shortly after as a pair of offside penalties saw Dan Sheehan score and a promising start threatened to unravel for the Wallabies as Harry Potter then went down with a hamstring injury.
But instead of derailing them, the Wallabies showed the fight they needed to considering the circumstances as James Slipper scored to put Australia further ahead.
Tom Wright then nailed a 50-22 to set up the Wallabies in scoring territory again and on this occasion it was Jake Gordon who sliced through to extend the lead.
Australia's attack was free-flowing at that point, with Tommy Freeman in the bin, as Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii split the Lions defence with his silky footwork and found Wright backing up in support.
It was a dream start for Joe Schmidt's side, who lead 23-5 after 30 minutes, but momentum then flipped in the Lions' favour as back-to-back tries left the halftime deficit at 23-17.
The 23 points were the most the Wallabies had scored in the first half against the Lions — a record dating all the way back to 1899.
Given the way the Lions finished the first half, it felt like the opening try in the second stanza would be particularly crucial.
The Wallabies had a chance to go over first when Langi Gleeson and Fraser McReight combined to split the Lions defence, finding Suaalii in space.
Suaalii had a number of teammates open on the left edge but was taken to the ground by Tom Curry in a desperate last-ditch effort that forced the ball free, seeing a try go begging.
Instead, it was the Lions who scored the first try of the second half through Tadhg Beirne in the 60th minute to reduce the deficit to 26-24 after an earlier Lynagh penalty goal extended Australia's lead.
In the end, last-minute try broke Australia's hearts, with the no-penalty call to dominate discussion in the days to come.