Australia v England LIVE rugby: Result and reaction as England win deciding Test
Follow live updates as England beat Australia in a huge series decider at the Sydney Cricket Ground
England outwitted and outfought an error-prone Australia 21-17 to win their July series 2-, a second success for northern hemisphere rugby after Ireland’s earlier triumph over the All Blacks.
Young guns Freddie Steward and Marcus Smith scored the tries and England’s streetwise pack bossed the breakdown as coach Eddie Jones masterminded a second series victory over his own country after their 3-0 sweep in 2016.
Australia scored tries through Tom Wright and Folau Fainga’a in front of a sellout crowd of 43,274 at the Sydney Cricket Ground, but the home side’s accuracy deserted them too frequently at crucial moments.
Australia won the opening test 30-28 in Perth but England struck back with a 25-17 victory in Brisbane to take the series to Saturday’s decider.
Follow live reaction from the Australia vs England series decider below:
H/T: Australia 10-11 England
Here’s that Freddie Steward score. The Leicester and England full-back has now exceeded the RPA stipulated maximum minutes for a long, long season, which isn’t great evidence that player welfare is truly being prioritised, but he’s produced another excellent first 40.
H/T: Australia 10-11 England
A single point between the sides in this nip-and-tuck deciding encounter. An odd sort of half in which both sides have played with ambition and enjoyed some open outside spaces, but lacking accuracy from Australia and England has rather spoiled a contest yet to come to the boil.
Freddie Steward’s score on half-time has England ahead, which will make those in white feel rather better as they bite into the half-time oranges.
TRY! Australia 10-11 ENGLAND (Freddie Steward try, 41 minutes)
And this time Tom Wright can’t stop Freddie Steward! It was a truly remarkable intervention from the Wallabies wing to prevent Freeman, who had cut a sharp line, from reaching for the line, tugging him back by the shirt elastic to somehow prevent a grounding.
But England continued with conviction, Jack van Poortvliet providing sharp service and picking his options well. He looks to his Leicester teammate Steward on the blindside, and the full-back strides inside Wright to crash over and put England into a half-time lead - which will be just a single point as Owen Farrell again fails from the tee.
Australia 10-6 England, 40 minutes
Penalty advantage to England, and another infringement from Australia might force Paul Williams to think about more.
England play left - how has Tommy Freeman been halted? Remarkable from Tom Wright to drag back the England wing as he seemed certain to score, but still England come...
Missed penalty! Australia 10-6 England, 39 minutes
Off the woodwork! A clean enough strike from Owen Farrell, but it comes back off the post.
Another penalty to England, though. Australia run the ball out of their own 22 but cut down, and Courtney Lawes and co. pick sharply at the carrion. This time the England captain directs Farrell to kick to the corner.
Australia 10-6 England, 37 minutes
Crikey - Danny Care is walking off! There’s no apparent injury, and it appears Eddie Jones has hooked his experienced scrum-half before half-time!
Jack van Poortvliet, impressive on his first start last week, comes on, presumably with Jones seeking a bit more game control. Not the first time that Jones has used his crook, but in the past it has tended to be struggling youngsters rather than a recalled 87-cap veteran.
England win a penalty at the scrum.
Australia 10-6 England, 36 minutes
Oddly, for a half in which both sides have made consistent metres it feels like both England and Australia are still feeling their way into the contest. It’s been a bit error prone, which has stalled the flow.
Another lively dance in open space from England sees Freddie Steward foxtrotting through a hole, but his offload hits the deck with Guy Porter unable to gather.
Australia like the adventurous rhythms, though Taniela Tupou and James Slipper are out of time - the tighthead’s jaunty offload to his loosehead is ambitious, and knocked on.
PENALTY! Australia 10-6 ENGLAND (Owen Farrell penalty, 34 minutes)
Two from two off the tee for Owen Farrell.
Australia 10-3 England, 32 minutes
That’s not the smartest exit drill from Australia, though, passing out the back twice and then booting straight into touch having began outside their own 22.
England lineout, which is efficiently executed - rather more so, in fact, than the attempted play from the back of it, with Jamie George’s inside ball directed to no-one in particular. England get a little fortunate - Australia fail to get their ruck detail right, and are penalised.
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