Schmidt backs Donaldson after fly-half's last-gasp penalty miss costs Wallabies in 33-31 thriller

Australia’s Nations Championship hopes were dashed at Allianz Stadium on Saturday when Ben Donaldson pushed a last-gasp penalty wide right, handing Ireland a 33-31 victory and a sixth consecutive win over the Wallabies in front of a record Sydney crowd.

Donaldson had already missed a kick at goal eight minutes earlier, and the pressure of the moment was visible — Wallabies players on the sideline briefly appeared to believe the final attempt had gone over before the ball drifted wide. Fly-half half Dylan Pietsch ran straight to Donaldson after the miss, and captain Harry Wilson joined coach Joe Schmidt in rallying around their teammate.

“He’s got those kicks in him and they weren’t there tonight, but we’re going to keep backing those guys,” Schmidt told reporters. “We missed a couple of kicks early in the game as well, so that’s the nature of it. The players got around Dono straight away.”

Schmidt was careful not to reduce the defeat to a single moment, acknowledging the Wallabies had to be sharper at converting the chances they created throughout the match.

The hosts had looked well-placed for much of the contest. Tries from Dylan Pietsch, Jock Campbell, Josh Canham and Ryan Lonergan gave Australia a commanding first-half lead, but Ireland closed the gap before the break when Jamison Gibson-Park finished off a sweeping attack. The two sides traded tries early in the second half before a 23-minute scoring drought set up the frantic finale.

Captain Wilson was proud of the effort despite the result. “I thought we created a lot of chances for ourselves,” he said. “I was really proud of our defence — I thought the boys turned up for each other and really wanted to win the physical battle. It’s just our discipline, especially in that second half, that really hurt us. When you play a team like Ireland, they definitely make you pay.”

Ireland had trailed from the 23rd minute until the closing stages, but showed the composure of a side that has now won six straight Tests against Australia. For the Wallabies, the margin between a famous home win and a heartbreaking loss came down to inches at the posts.