History of rugby union matches between Australia and Wales

Since 1908 Australia and Wales have competed against each other in rugby union in 46 matches, Australia having won 31, 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.

Summary

Overview

Records

Note: Date shown in brackets indicates when the record was or last set.

History

In 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

List of series

References

External links

• Results archive from WRU

1. History of rugby union matches between Australia and New Zealand
2. History of rugby union matches between South Africa and Wales
3. History of rugby union matches between Australia and England
4. History of rugby union matches between Australia and South Africa
5. History of rugby union matches between England and Wales
6. History of rugby union matches between Australia and France
7. History of rugby union matches between Australia and Ireland
8. History of rugby union matches between Italy and Wales
9. History of rugby union matches between Argentina and Wales
10. History of rugby union matches between Argentina and Australia
11. History of rugby union matches between New Zealand and Wales
12. History of rugby union matches between England and South Africa
13. History of rugby union matches between Australia and Scotland
14. History of rugby union
15. Rugby union in Australia
16. History of rugby union matches between France and New Zealand
17. History of rugby union in Australia
18. History of rugby union matches between Argentina and New Zealand
19. Comparison of rugby league and rugby union
20. History of rugby union matches between Ireland and New Zealand