History of rugby union matches between Australia and Wales
Since 1908 Australia and Wales have competed against each other in rugby union in 48 matches, Australia having won 33, Wales 14, with 1 draw. Since 2007 the teams have competed for the James Bevan Trophy, which was created to celebrate 100 years of rugby between the two nations.[1]
Summary
editOverview
editDetails | Played | Won by Australia |
Won by Wales |
Drawn | Australia points | Wales points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
In Australia | 14 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 437 | 216 |
In Wales | 29 | 18 | 10 | 1 | 613 | 479 |
Neutral venue | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 88 | 115 |
Overall | 48 | 33 | 14 | 1 | 1,138 | 810 |
Records
editNote: Date shown in brackets indicates when the record was or last set.
Record | Australia | Wales |
---|---|---|
Longest winning streak | 13 (28 Nov 2009 – 10 Nov 2018) | 3 (21 Jun 1969 – 11 Jun 1978; 10 Nov 2018 – 26 Nov 2022) |
Largest points for | ||
Home | 63 (22 July 1991) | 34 (26 November 2022) |
Away | 39 (26 November 2022) | 40 (24 September 2023) |
Largest winning margin | ||
Home | 57 (22 July 1991) | 25 (20 December 1975) |
Away | 35 (12 October 1991) | 34 (24 September 2023) |
History
editIn the first 70 years, Wales won six of the eight matches. Over the next 10 years it was fairly even, but since the first World Cup in 1987, Australia has dominated by 26 wins to 6. The 2006 match ended in the second highest-scoring draw of all time, 29–29.
Australia snatched victory in the inaugural James Bevan Trophy test match 29–23 with a last minute try at the Telstra Stadium in Sydney on 26 May 2007. They followed this up with a 31–0 victory at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.
Wales captured the trophy the following year with a 21–18 victory in Cardiff, but since then it remained in Australian hands with 13 consecutive wins. Three victories in Cardiff in 2009–11 were followed up by a 3–0 series win in Australia in 2012, all by narrow margins. In the return match at Cardiff, Australia once again won with a last minute try.
The 2011 Rugby World Cup brought Australia and Wales together again for another third-place play-off, and once again it was a close finish, with Australia claiming third place in a reversal of the first World Cup in 1987, when Wales won the play-off 22–21.
Wales ended a run of 13 consecutive defeats against Australia on 10 November 2018, winning 9–6. They have since defeated Australia 29–25 in the 2019 Rugby World Cup, 29–28 in Cardiff on 20 November 2021 and a record 40-6 in the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
Results
editNo. | Date | Venue | Score | Winner | Competition |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 12 December 1908 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 9–6 | Wales | 1908–09 Australia tour of Great Britain |
2 | 26 November 1927 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 8–18 | Australia | 1927–28 Waratahs tour of Europe and North America |
3 | 20 December 1947 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 6–0 | Wales | 1947–48 Australia tour of Europe and North America |
4 | 4 January 1958 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 9–3 | Wales | 1957–58 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and France |
5 | 3 December 1966 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 11–14 | Australia | 1966–67 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and France |
6 | 21 June 1969 | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 16–19 | Wales | 1969 Wales tour of Australia, New Zealand and Fiji |
7 | 10 November 1973 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 24–0 | Wales | 1973 Australia tour of Great Britain and Italy |
8 | 20 December 1975 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 28–3 | Wales | 1975–76 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and North America |
9 | 11 June 1978 | Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane | 18–8 | Australia | 1978 Wales tour of Australia |
10 | 17 June 1978 | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 19–17 | Australia | |
11 | 5 December 1981 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 18–13 | Wales | 1981–82 Australia tour of Great Britain and Ireland |
12 | 24 November 1984 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 9–28 | Australia | 1984 Australia tour of Great Britain and Ireland |
13 | 18 June 1987 | Rotorua Int. Stadium, Rotorua (New Zealand) | 21–22 | Wales | 1987 Rugby World Cup |
14 | 22 July 1991 | Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane | 63–6 | Australia | 1991 Wales tour of Australia |
15 | 12 October 1991 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 3–38 | Australia | 1991 Rugby World Cup |
16 | 21 November 1992 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 6–23 | Australia | 1992 Australia tour of Great Britain and Ireland |
17 | 9 June 1996 | Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane | 56–25 | Australia | 1996 Wales tour of Australia |
18 | 22 June 1996 | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney | 42–3 | Australia | |
19 | 1 December 1996 | National Stadium, Cardiff | 19–28 | Australia | 1996 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and Italy |
20 | 23 October 1999 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 9–24 | Australia | 1999 Rugby World Cup |
21 | 25 November 2001 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 13–21 | Australia | 2001 Australia tour of Europe |
22 | 14 June 2003 | Stadium Australia, Sydney | 30–10 | Australia | 2003 Wales tour of Australia and New Zealand |
23 | 26 November 2005 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 24–22 | Wales | 2005 Autumn International |
24 | 4 November 2006 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 29–29 | draw | 2006 Autumn International |
25 | 26 May 2007 | Stadium Australia, Sydney | 29–23 | Australia | 2007 Wales tour of Australia |
26 | 2 June 2007 | Lang Park, Brisbane | 31–0 | Australia | |
27 | 15 September 2007 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 20–32 | Australia | 2007 Rugby World Cup |
28 | 29 November 2008 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 21–18 | Wales | 2008 Autumn International |
29 | 28 November 2009 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 12–33 | Australia | 2009 Autumn International |
30 | 6 November 2010 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 16–25 | Australia | 2010 Autumn International |
31 | 21 October 2011 | Eden Park, Auckland (New Zealand) | 21–18 | Australia | 2011 Rugby World Cup |
32 | 3 December 2011 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 18–24 | Australia | 2011 Autumn International |
33 | 9 June 2012 | Lang Park, Brisbane | 27–19 | Australia | 2012 Wales tour of Australia |
34 | 16 June 2012 | Docklands Stadium, Melbourne | 25–23 | Australia | |
35 | 23 June 2012 | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney | 20–19 | Australia | |
36 | 1 December 2012 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 12–14 | Australia | 2012 Autumn International |
37 | 30 November 2013 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 26–30 | Australia | 2013 Autumn International |
38 | 8 November 2014 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 28–33 | Australia | 2014 Autumn International |
39 | 10 October 2015 | Twickenham Stadium, London (England) | 15–6 | Australia | 2015 Rugby World Cup |
40 | 5 November 2016 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 8–32 | Australia | 2016 Autumn International |
41 | 11 November 2017 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 21–29 | Australia | 2017 Autumn International |
42 | 10 November 2018 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 9–6 | Wales | 2018 Autumn International |
43 | 29 September 2019 | Tokyo Stadium Chōfu (Japan) | 25–29 | Wales | 2019 Rugby World Cup |
44 | 20 November 2021 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 29–28 | Wales | 2021 Autumn International |
45 | 26 November 2022 | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | 34–39 | Australia | 2022 Autumn International |
46 | 24 September 2023 | Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon (France) | 6–40 | Wales | 2023 Rugby World Cup |
47 | 6 July 2024 | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney | 25–16 | Australia | 2024 Wales tour of Australia |
48 | 13 July 2024 | Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, Melbourne | 36–28 | Australia |
List of series
editPlayed | Won by Australia |
Won by Wales |
Drawn |
---|---|---|---|
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
Year | Australia | Wales | Series winner | James Bevan Trophy |
---|---|---|---|---|
1978 | 2 | 0 | Australia | Not awarded |
1996 | 2 | 0 | Australia | |
2007 | 2 | 0 | Australia | |
2012 | 3 | 0 | Australia | |
2024 | 2 | 0 | Australia |
References
edit- ^ James Bevan Trophy unveiled in Sydney, Welsh Rugby Union, 2007-05-24