Australia survive four yellow cards to beat South Africa 42-38 in Perth

Australia beat South Africa 42-38 in Perth on Sunday after a run of yellow cards reduced the Wallabies to 11 players during the closing stages. The hosts survived a late Springbok recovery to reclaim the Mandela Challenge Plate for the first time since 2022, according to Rugby Australia's match report.

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BBC Sport reported that Australia had led by 25 points with 16 minutes remaining before four yellow cards in nine minutes transformed the contest. South Africa had made 13 changes from the side that beat New Zealand in Baltimore, but their starting team still included a second-row pairing with 240 international appearances between them.

Len Ikitau scored twice for Australia in the first half, while Johan Grobbelaar and Edwill van der Merwe crossed for South Africa. Ben Donaldson's try helped put the Wallabies 24-17 ahead at the interval. After the break, Harry Wilson and Max Jorgensen added tries as Australia stretched their advantage to 42-17. Ryan Lonergan finished with four conversions and three penalties.

The closing sequence brought yellow cards for Wilson, Lonergan, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and Hunter Paisami. South Africa were awarded a penalty try before Morne van den Berg and Ox Nche scored. Tom Wright appeared to have given Australia another try with an interception, but that score was disallowed for Paisami's dangerous tackle in the build-up. The visitors ultimately finished four points short.

Rugby Australia reported that Wilson and Lonergan were back on the field for the final passage, when South Africa conceded an obstruction penalty while trying to move the ball wide. The finish followed prolonged interruptions: in a separate post-match report, Rugby Australia said a communications breakdown forced television match official decisions to be relayed by mobile phone, while the final 10 minutes took close to 25 minutes to complete.

Coach Les Kiss credited his players' composure as their numbers dwindled. Speaking in Rugby Australia's post-match coverage, he said the group retained clarity about its next tasks despite the pressure. He also praised Australia's game management and aerial play, describing those areas as improvements on recent performances. His side had made nine line breaks in the opening 70 minutes, compared with three for South Africa.