Australia ignite World Cup dreams with brilliant and bizarre win over South Africa

A year out from the World Cup, Australia have sent a huge warning shot to the competition, upsetting the two-time trophy winners South Africa with an extraordinary 42-38 win in Perth. On a weekend when the Australian Rules and rugby league competitions delivered fairy-tale comebacks, the Wallabies trumped both domestic rival codes, hammering rugby’s number one team with a skilful display that ended in bizarre circumstances when the men in gold held on despite being reduced to 11 players.

Fittingly, the victory found the Wallabies harnessing the aerial powers of Australian Rules and the rambunctious power of rugby league to dominate rugby’s world champions with a brilliant, inventive and courageous five-try performance that kept alive new coach Les Kiss’s unbeaten record and breathed new hope into the hearts of Australian fans nationwide.