Australia v Wales LIVE rugby: Result and reaction as Wallabies end losing run with victory in Sydney

This is going to be a big day for Aaron Wainwright, who will be awarded his 50th cap for Wales.

While the country is trying to figure out how to fill the role left by Tomas Francis who moved to Provence after the 2023 World Cup.

The match will kick off in just 10 minutes time, but there have been a lot of changes in Australian Rugby after the World Cup last autumn so no one is too sure what to make of this side.

From a Wales perspective, they will sense an opportunity to secure their first win in the country since 1969

Both sides completed their captain’s run at the Allianz Arena in Sydney yesterday in preparation for this morning’s clash.

Mike Forshaw expects Wales to encounter “a different animal” from the 2023 World Cup in Saturday’s first Test against Australia.

When Wales last met the Wallabies they posted a record 40-6 victory as Australia’s World Cup campaign unravelled with indecent haste.

With former England head coach Eddie Jones at the helm, Australia made a pool stage exit for the first time after also losing to Fiji.

Jones departed just 10 months into a five-year contract, with Australian rugby chiefs then turning to ex-Ireland boss Joe Schmidt.

Schmidt, who masterminded three Six Nations title triumphs during his stint with Ireland, takes charge for the first time in Sydney this weekend.

“They will be a different side, a different animal from the last time we played them,” Wales assistant coach and defence specialist Forshaw said. “I think they will be a lot more structured under Joe Schmidt, and they will know exactly what they are going for.”

Wales newcomer Regan Grace has been described as “an unbelievable player” after securing a place in Warren Gatland’s Australia tour squad.

Despite playing only two senior games of rugby union for his club Bath, former league star Grace could pull on the red shirt Down Under.

Whether that is during two Tests against the Wallabies or a July 19 appointment with Queensland Reds, a first Wales appearance looks likely sooner rather than later for the 27-year-old wing.

Grace, who scored 89 tries for St Helens during a league career that saw him feature in three Grand Final-winning teams, is under contract with Bath until the end of next season.

He switched codes in 2022 but ruptured his Achilles tendon ahead of joining French Top 14 club Racing 92 and he did not play for them at all after suffering an injury relapse six months later.

Gloucester back Josh Hathaway will make his Test debut and Cardiff’s Ben Thomas has been handed the fly-half role when Wales face Australia in Sydney on Saturday.

Aberystwyth-born Hathaway, who has represented Wales and England at under-20 level, starts on the wing.

Wales head coach Warren Gatland moved quickly to secure the 20-year-old’s services, which was brought into sharp focus after Exeter wing Immanuel Feyi-Waboso was in a similar position last season and chose England.

Aaron Wainwright hits half-century

No 8 Wainwright will become the latest member of Wales’ 50-cap club when he runs out in Sydney on Saturday, and there can be little doubt about the value he brings to Gatland’s team.

Consistency is his trademark, and he has effortlessly filled a position that Taulupe Faletau made his own for many seasons, featuring in two thirds of the Tests Wales have played since he made his debut against Argentina in San Juan six years ago.

Wainwright’s experience and reliability will be crucial if Wales are to make an impact Down Under, with his work alongside back-row colleagues Reffell and Taine Plumtree being a vital cog in the machinery.

Ben Thomas moves to number 10

It is safe to say that Wales’ No 10 shirt is up for grabs. Since Gatland returned for a second stint as Wales head coach ahead of the 2023 Six Nations, Cardiff prospect Thomas will become his sixth different starting fly-half.

Dan Biggar has now retired from Test rugby, while the experienced Gareth Anscombe suffered another injury setback during the World Cup.

Owen Williams, Sam Costelow and Ioan Lloyd have also had chances of varying degrees, and attention now turns to Thomas, who regularly features for Cardiff as a centre. He returns to Test rugby three years after his last Wales appearance, and the stage is his to make a statement.

Life after Eddie Jones

Australia slumped to a World Cup low at the 2023 tournament in France, making a pool stage exit for the first time before head coach Eddie Jones’ reign ended just 10 months into a five-year contract.

The former England boss won only two of his nine games in charge, with Wales among those to pile on the misery through a 40-6 World Cup victory in Lyon.

Australian rugby chiefs then turned to former Ireland boss Joe Schmidt, who masterminded three Six Nations title triumphs and victories over New Zealand during a success-laden time at the helm, and he is now poised for a first game as Wallabies head coach amid considerable expectation that he can turn things around.

Gatland welcomes reinforcements

Wales’ opening summer international saw them lose 41-13 against South Africa at Twickenham, but as that game fell outside World Rugby’s fixture schedule window it meant that England-based players Nick Tompkins, Josh Hathaway, Dillon Lewis, Archie Griffin, Dafydd Jenkins, Christ Tshiunza and Tommy Reffell were unavailable for selection.

Gatland can now call on their services again, though, as Wales target a first Test match victory for nine months.

Jenkins and Reffell, especially, are cornerstones of the head coach’s pack, and they will have huge roles to play in Sydney, while it will be fascinating to see how uncapped Gloucester back Josh Hathaway fares at the top level.