French BaaBaas reign supreme against Wallaby XV
In a historic match for Australian Rugby, the Wallaby XV showcased the past, present and future of the Wallabies, being comprised of former Australian Internationals currently plying their trade in Europe, promising young Wallabies squad members and a range of up-and-coming players with the potential to push for selection in the national team.
The match started well for the Wallaby XV with former Australian captain, Ben Mowen leading by example to go over for a try in the corner as the French Barbarians were caught off guard by the pace of the game in the opening two minutes.
As both defences dug in, the match became a see-saw battle for momentum throughout the first half with both sides trading penalties. The boot of Nick Frisby gave the Wallaby XV a narrow 8-3 lead at half-time.
The second half saw the French Barbarians step up their intensity against the Wallaby XV and slowly claw back the lead. Two penalty goals from French back, Julien Dumora gave the French side the advantage in the 60th minute.
With the vocal home crowd cheering them on the French scored a try in the 77th minute through number eight Camille Gerondeau to ensure that the home side prevailed.
The Wallabies will play Ireland this weekend in Dublin as the Australian squad continues its quest for a Grand Slam of the Home Nations.
The scorers:
For French Barbarians:
Try: Gerondeau
Con: Dumora
Pens: Lonca, Diamora 3
For Australia XV:
Try: Mowen
Pens: Frisby, Godwin
Teams:
French Barbarians: 15 Hugo Bonneval, 14 Blair Connor, 13 Pierre Aguillon, 12 Aurélien Rougerie, 11 Louis Dupichot, 10 Romain Lonca, 9 Yann Lesgourgues, 8 Raphaël Lakafia, 7 Camille Gérondeau, 6 Romain Sazy, 5 Rodrigo Capó Ortega, 4 Felix Lambey, 3 Julien Brugnaut, 2 Rémi Bonfils, 1 Lucas Pointud.
Replacements: 16 Jean-Charles Orioli, 17 Jean-Baptiste Poux, 18 Loïc Jacquet, 19 Jean Monribot, 20 Antoine Dupont, 21 Julien Dumora, 22 Julien Caminati, 23 Alexandre Menini.
Wallaby XV: 15 Luke Morahan, 14 Marika Koroibete, 13 Mark Gerrard, 12 Kyle Godwin, 11 Taqele Naiyaravoro, 10 Jono Lance, 9 Nick Frisby, 8 Ben Mowen, 7 Jack Dempsey, 6 Peter Kimlin, 5 Sam Carter, 4 Will Skelton (captain), 3 Tom Robertson, 2 Nathan Charles, 1 Paddy Ryan.
Replacements: 16 Andrew Ready, 17 Sef Fa'agase, 18 David Lolohea, 19 Scott Fardy, 20 Henry Vanderglas, 21 Nic Stirzaker, 22 Izaia Perese, 23 Andrew Kellaway.
Twenty-fourth man: Henry Clunies-Ross
Referee: Juan Sylvestre (Argentina)
Assistant referees: Laurent Cardona (France), Maxime Chalon (France)
TMO: Arnaud Blondel (France)
