Wales player ratings: ‘Gritty’ back-row again impress as Wallabies claim series win
Wales pack celebrate Dewi Lake try against Australia-Alamy
Following their 36-28 defeat to the Wallabies in the second Test of the series, here is how we rated the Wales players in the physical encounter in Melbourne.
Backs
15 Cameron Winnett: Came up with a costly error for Australia’s second try, but overall had a decent game. Linked up well with Ben Thomas in attack, and came up with some really nice touches with ball-in-hand. Sent Liam Williams in for a good try too with a clean delayed pass. 7
14 Liam Williams: Kept relatively quiet in the first-half, but his try in the opening exchanges of the second-half dragged Wales back into the contest. 6
13 Owen Watkin: Came up with some nice touches late on into the game, but otherwise another quiet day for the centre. Was dealt with well in the midfield, and overall struggled getting meaningful touches of the ball. 5
12 Mason Grady: Seems to be wasted in the 12 channel at Test level. Did produce some decent carries in the closing minutes but lacked that punch for most of the game. Struggled for large chunks to gain any foothold in the contest. 5
11 Rio Dyer: Kept quiet for much of the game, but scored a great try late into the day. Came up with some decent kick-chases and got involved in the defensive efforts too. 6
10 Ben Thomas: Again gave fly-half a decent go. He steered Wales around the pitch well and combined with Winnett in the back-field to play a bit more expansively than last week. Recovered from a shaky start to kick well from the tee. 6
9 Ellis Bevan: Just did what he needed to again. Distributed well from the base of the ruck, and gave Wales some decent front-foot ball. Came up with some nice box kicks too. 6
Back-row
8 Taine Plumtree: Had big shoes to fill taking over from Aaron Wainwright, but did very well. Nearly grabbed a clever try, and again just got through a lot of work on both sides of the ball. 7
7 Tommy Reffell: Ran his blood to water. Seemed to pop up everywhere on the pitch, and kept the play alive numerous times with some clever reads. Produced some strong tackles as always too. 7
6 James Botham: A really gritty performance from Botham, just never stopped working for his team. Got through plenty of work in attack, and was often his side’s main carrying option. Also put himself about in defence. 8
Tight five
5 Dafydd Jenkins: Really earning a reputation as a workhorse lock. Just got stuck into the ugly stuff for his team. Was also typically solid at the set-piece too, and was a thorn in Australia’s side at the lineout. 6
4 Christ Tshiunza: Like teammate Jenkins, put the Wallabies lineout under pressure with some clever defensive efforts. Again put his monstrous frame to good use around the park in both defence and attack. His charge down proved crucial in Dyer’s try. 7
3 Archie Griffin: More improvement from the young tighthead. Seemed to be more solid in the scrum but also got involved in the loose as well. Carried hard into traffic. 6
2 Dewi Lake: Another busy showing from the skipper. Just got involved in every facet of the game, and finished off two powerful mauls. Also produced some crucial interventions at the breakdown. 8
1 Gareth Thomas: Scrum got off to a very tough start, but became more solid as the game went on under pressure from Taniela Tupou and Allan Alaalatoa (until the last scrum). Came up with some decent defensive plays too when needed. 5
Replacements: The bench wasn’t utilised to its fullest extent, but the players who did come on struggled to turn the tide back into Wales’ favour. Sam Costelow produced some decent kicks, but that was about it for the bench unfortunately. The Wallabies replacements added much more impact in comparison. 4
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