Relieved. Proud. Grateful. Those were the feelings and thoughts racing through Will Genia’s mind as Australia got out of gaol in their quarter-final with the Scots. A controversial penalty, later decided by World Rugby to be the wrong call from referee Craig Joubert, was converted by a calm Bernard Foley with less than a minute left. It sealed a one-point win that kept the Wallabies’ World Cup hopes alive, and at the same time, crushed Scottish dreams.
Genia, on the bench having been replaced by Nick Phipps after 70 minutes, couldn’t bear to watch that agonising and pivotal final play. “I had the big hoodie on,” he says. “I put my head down and just thought if I hear a really loud cheer he’s missed, if I hear a little bit of a cheer he’s got it. So I was hopeful there’d be a little bit of a cheer.”
Australia rode its luck in their last pool match against Wales, keeping out their opponents despite being reduced to 13 men, and then again with Scotland. They were now a team that the rugby gods were smiling on. At times at Twickenham the Wallabies were scintillating – running in five tries, opening up the Scottish defence repeatedly – but their costly errors, one charge down and one intercept, not to mention wobbles in the set-piece, were seized on by a ruthless, committed and driven Scotland side. By the slimmest of margins Australia is through to it sixth semi-final appearance from eight World Cups, a record matched only by mighty New Zealand.
Genia, a vastly experienced international with more than 60 caps under his belt, is quick to praise the Scots. “They’re a fit team, a fast team and look to use the ball,” said the Wallabies veteran. “They played so well that first half. They maintained possession and built pressure in our 22 and came away with points pretty much the whole time. You’ve got to give credit to them and they were a whisker away from being in a semi-final. We got lucky this time and I’m really grateful for obviously another win and another week being here.”
But Genia and co know the time for prayers, being thankful and for counting their lucky stars, has passed. The tournament rolls on and a new opponent has emerged, a confident Argentinian side who battered Ireland by 23 points in their own quarter-final. The Pumas will have noted with interest the Wallabies struggles in the scrum and line-out, and now face the prospect of reaching a World Cup final for the first time in their history. This is a team that has beaten Australia before – in Mendoza last year – and knows how to get under their skin.
“Argentina obviously played really well. We play them a number of times with the Rugby Championship so we’ll go away… then we’ll do our homework. We didn’t think too far ahead [to the semi-final]. We knew how hard Scotland would be and we had to get the win. I don’t know if it’s an upset or not that Argentina won [against Ireland]. They played really, really well and it will be another tough week.”
Michael Cheika’s game-by-game, fly-under-the-radar, respect-each-opponent approach has worked well so far in the World Cup, though some have accused the Wallabies of complacency against Scotland. Cheika and his players steadfastly deny this and it’s true that the brave barrage from Scotland – a team that could not even win a single game in the Six Nations this year – would have surprised even the most optimistic members of the tartan faithful.
Cheika’s greatest achievements in his short time in charge of Australia has been a restoration of the team ethos, creating an increased sense of self-belief and bringing a harder edge to their preparation. This is a side that won’t die wondering, that will keep fighting to the final whistle and will stay true to the Wallabies’ long-standing traditions of running rugby. This Australian team is as tight-knit as any in recent years and that togetherness has been showcased throughout the tournament.
“We gain confidence from working hard at training,” Genia says. “We know if we prepare well and look to improve ourselves each day, even by 1%, we can better as people, better as players and that gives us a chance to play well. We speak a lot about belief. As hair-raising as those sorts of moments can be you still have to back yourself and what you can do as an individual and collectively as a group. It was nerve-wracking for the guys on the sideline but we had genuine belief in the guys on the field at the time.”
For Genia, who was on the pitch four years ago when the All Blacks knocked the Wallabies out in a semi-final, and then went on to beat France in the final, the here and now is all-important. As a topline professional, now 27 years of age and soon to embark on a club stint in France, he’s well aware that World Cup semis don’t come around very often.
With the drama and controversy of the Scotland game now put to bed, Argentina – the might of Juan Martin Frenandez Lobbe, the try-scoring prowess of Juan Imhoff and the deadly boot of Nicolas Sanchez – is the sole focus. Getting past the Pumas in any way, shape or form, refereeing blunder or not, is the challenge ahead.
“It’s World Cup rugby, it doesn’t matter. We walk out of here knowing we’re here for another week because we’ve won. Obviously there’s parts of the game to analyse, parts of the game to see if there’s things we can do better. But when it’s knockout football like this you’ve just got to get the win to give yourself another chance to be here.”
