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Two years have gone by since Uruguay faced Australia in Birmingham, England. The fixture was a pool match in Rugby World Cup 2015. It was the first time the countries had ever faced-off in a rugby match. The two-time Rugby World Cup champions, Australia, were not only heavy favorites but were expected to win by far mroe points than they did.
Los Teros were back in the Rugby World Cup for the first time in twelve years. Coincidentally Uruguay’s was playing in England, the last opponent at the Australian-hosted event in 2003. Moreover Uruguay’s Head Coach in 2015 was Pablo Lemoine, the same player to have scored against England in Brisbane twelve years earlier.
Uruguay’s appearance in Birmingham was Los Teros’ second of Rugby World Cup 2015. The first had been against Wales in Cardiff seven days earlier. The South Americans started the match strongly, holding the lead in the opening quarter.
The home side went on to win 54-9, a scoreline far closer than many had expected prior to ther tournament. Reason for doubting Uruguay’s level was based on results from Rugby World Cup 2003 and also the small size of many of the forwards compared to their opposites.
Uruguay’s loss in Brisbane had been by a scoreline of 111-13. It was the fourth and final pool match of a tough campaign. A disorganized schedule saw Los Teros facing the might of England after four days rest. Uruguay was coming off a famous 24-12 win over Georgia.
In matches one and two the South Americans faced South Africa and Samoa in Perth. Further controversy meant Uruguay had just three rest-days between matches. The Springboks ran-out 72-6 winners while Samoa won by 60-13.
As the results demonstrated Uruguay had made tremendous progress from 2003 to rise their game against Wales in 2015. Wales in 2015 was clearly a stronger opponent than Samoa had been in 2003 and arguably also than South Africa.
Australia, meanwhile, were Rugby World Cup 2015 runners-up. The Wallabies eliminated England, Scotland and Argentina from the tournament. Based on their level compared to Uruguay and history many were predicting a big win, similar to that of England’s in Brisbane in 2003.
The South Americans were outmatchjes but demonstrated outstanding gains. Organized defense, fit players and an improved game beyond the scrum-half all contributed to Uruguay losing by a similar scoreline to that of against Samoa in Perth. The 65-3 result was a big Wallabies victory but also a huge triumph for the Estadio Charrúa project.
For a complete match report from Australia vs Uruguay click here.
