Player ratings: Wales fumble to fourth

Wales fought manfully in their third-place play-off against Australia but seemed to be their own worst enemies at times and ended coming up just short in a game high on passion but low on quality.

The Welsh were determined but cost themselves by simply making too many basic errors that handed the momentum back to the Wallabies at crucial times.

Coach Warren Gatland’s charges will be left rueing their many handling errors and mistakes at vital stages which saw them fall short in an entertaining match against the Tri-Nations champions.

We rate the Wales players:

15 Leigh Halfpenny:
Some good positional play from the fullback but he did not see much of the ball as Australia hogged the possession and his best pass was probably to the assistant referee. Isolated himself at times but capped the game off with a late consolation try.
6/10

14 George North:
Made some determined runs and bled for the cause but did not get many opportunities to stretch his legs in space. Used his physicality when he could and broke out the big hand-off as well.
7/10

13 Jonathan Davies:
Didn’t get much of a chance to take the Wallaby midfield on, and found himself kicking the ball more than he would have liked after being put under pressure by the enthusiastic Australian defence. He tackled with gusto but was fairly anonymous for much of the game.
6/10

12 Jamie Roberts:
Ran hard and straight, showed some slick hands but battled to control the ball in contact at times. He made his tackles but did not impose himself on the opposition as he had earlier in the tournament.
6/10

11 Shane Williams:
Looked for work in his World Cup swansong and looked dangerous when he got the ball in space. Did well to finish off his try which gave his side the lead for the first time in the match and took a smashing from Wallaby hooker Polota-Nau.
7/10

10 James Hook:
A shocking performance, he slipped off tackles, spilt high balls, missed a sitter in front of the poles and his passing was sloppy. He also nearly butchered Williams’ try but his forward pass was not picked up and he was promptly substituted.
3/10

9 Mike Phillips:
A mixed bag, there were moments of brilliance such as his grubber to set up his team’s first try and he also ran well at the Australians but he was ponderous at the back of the ruck and his service was slow once more.
6/10

8 Ryan Jones:
A brilliant performance, he had a storming game making plenty of telling tackles, carrying the ball up with ferocity and getting over the gain line regularly. He was a menace at the breakdown making a number of turnovers and did well under pressure behind a scrum that was going backwards.
9/10

7 Toby Faletau:
Tackled hard and got around the park well in an energetic display but he definitely makes more of an impact when his team dominates possession.
6/10

6 Dan Lydiate:
Another hard-working performance which saw him tackle hard and do plenty of hard graft but he lost the ball in contact too often which halted his team’s momentum at crucial times.
5/10

5 Luke Charteris:
A big effort from this lanky operator, he was solid as ever in the line-out, a committed display on defence but struggled to assert himself as he would have liked.
6/10

4 Bradley Davies:
He battled hard throughout and made some crucial tackles as well as getting over the gain line regularly with ball in hand.
6/10

3 Paul James:
Got worked over by young James Slipper at scrum-time and had his side on the back foot for most of the game. A disappointing performance in which he was more of a liability for his team than anything else.
3/10

2 Huw Bennett:
A determined performance from the hooker who flew at the opposition with his usual fervour. Some dodgy line-out throwing blotted his copybook somewhat.
6/10

1 Gethin Jenkins (captain):
Led from the front carrying the ball up well and competing for it on the ground. Battled in the tight exchanges as part of a combination that was under pressure but he fought hard.
6/10

Replacements:

16 Lloyd Burns (On for Huw Bennett, 70th min):
Solid in the set-pieces he gave everything in his short time on the pitch.
6/10

17 Ryan Bevington (On for Paul James, 64th min):
Got involved in his short time on the park, carried the ball up a few times but had limited opportunities to stamp his authority on the opposition.
6/10

18 Alun Wyn Jones (On for Luke Charteris, 53rd min):
A solid display from this proven performer, he did the basics well and made some valuable contributions in loose play as well.
7/10

19 Andy Powell (On for Dan Lydiate, 64th min):
Made an immediate impact, using his physicality to charge over the gain line and get his team on the front foot as well as making some big hits in an enthusiastic display.
8/10

20 Lloyd Williams (On for Mike Phillips, 64th min):
Mediocre showing, his service was slow and sloppy at times and he will be disappointed that he could not provide more of a spark.
5/10

21 Stephen Jones (On for James Hook, 51st min):
Knocked the ball on under no pressure whatsoever in his first involvement and employed his familiar kicking game but there were some good touches as he put a few players in space.
6/10

22 Scott Williams (On for Jonathan Davies, 70th min):
Got as involved as he could in his short time on the pitch and showed a few good touches.
7/10