Fiji signs first upset of the World Cup by beating Australia

They were waiting for them on the wings, multiplying the arabesques. They came through in force. The Fijians created a sensation by beating unrecognizable Australians (22-15), Sunday September 17 in Saint-Etienne, during their second match in Pool C. Disciplined and relentless in the kicking game to achieve a territorial domination which carried the seal of their forwards, the Islanders have completely relaunched themselves in this World Cup after their inaugural defeat against Wales (26-32).

For Australia, on the other hand, the crisis is brewing. Already unconvincing when they entered the fray against Georgia (35-15), Eddie Jones’ men suffered on all fundamentals. You had to go back to 1954 to find traces of Australia’s last defeat against Fiji. This shows the control that the “island continent” had over its Pacific neighbor. But, on Sunday at Geoffroy-Guichard, the giants played in black and white.

Less madness, more control

Like scrum half Simione Kuruvoli, in a state of grace in the animation as in the exercise against the poles, the Flying Fijians did not even need to pull out their usual sleight of hand to falter their adversaries. The latter, apart from a trickster try scored by Mark Nawaqanitawase (24th), never showed anything. Worse, they made unforgivable errors, like on this kick where two Australians remained planted like stakes, letting Josua Tuisova slip towards the break try from the restart (8-19th, 43rd).