Wallabies stun Springboks in wild Test

The Wallabies have beaten the Springboks 42-38 in a one-off Test match at Optus Stadium in Perth. The Springboks, who were the reigning world champions, were far from their best and made numerous errors, including handling mistakes and dropped passes. According to The Citizen, these errors proved costly and prevented them from making a full comeback from a 42-17 deficit.

The Springboks had made 13 changes to their starting line-up, with only nine players remaining from their previous match against the All Blacks. This lack of cohesion, combined with nerves or a lack of game time, contributed to their poor performance. The Wallabies, meanwhile, capitalised on the Springboks' mistakes, with Max Jorgensen scoring a try after collecting a dropped pass from Canan Moodie.

The Springboks' defeat will be a disappointment, particularly for André Esterhuizen, who became South Africa's 68th Test captain, and Jasper Wiese, who reached his 50th Test milestone on the day. The match saw the Springboks make all eight of their substitutions in the 47th minute, in an attempt to turn the game around, but ultimately they were unable to overcome their errors and secure a win.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, The Citizen — 3 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.