Schmidt needs Italy win to avoid worst Wallabies win-rate as France expose flyhalf crisis

Joe Schmidt’s final chapter as Wallabies head coach is in danger of ending in ignominy after Australia were beaten 42-26 by France at Brisbane on Saturday, their sixth consecutive defeat and ninth in ten Tests.

Australia had looked capable of an upset, leading the back-to-back Six Nations champions 21-12 at halftime, but the game unravelled in a seven-minute collapse that produced three French tries. The damage coincided with fullback Tom Wright’s sin-bin for a professional foul, and France’s Romain Ntamack and Matthieu Jalibert — outstanding at flyhalf and fullback respectively — proved far too sharp for a depleted home side.

The defeat pushed Schmidt’s overall win percentage to 36.66 per cent — a record of 11 wins and 19 losses — leaving him below Dave Rennie’s 38.2 per cent. A win over Italy in Perth next Saturday is the only way Schmidt can avoid finishing as the Wallabies coach with the worst winning ratio in the role’s history.

“My time’s nearly finished and I just want to leave the house in good order,” Schmidt said after the match. “It’s hard at the moment to rationalise the positives and I know there were some.”

The outgoing coach acknowledged the scale of the task but insisted belief had not evaporated inside the camp, pointing to back-to-back sell-outs in Brisbane and Sydney as evidence of public support that the team has yet to repay with results.

“But to galvanise that we have to get results and I feel that acutely,” he said. “You don’t take jobs on like this to come second. Internally I’m incredibly competitive and just want these guys to get a little bit of reward.”

Schmidt inherited a program in disarray following Australia’s historic early exit at the 2023 Rugby World Cup and was persuaded to remain for this three-Test end-of-year series before Les Kiss — who observed training this week without direct involvement — takes over next month after coaching the Queensland Reds.

A flyhalf crisis has compounded Schmidt’s problems. Australia have used seven No.10s in their last 17 Tests, mostly through injury, and Saturday’s debutant Declan Meredith, 27, was thrown in only after Carter Gordon and Ben Donaldson both suffered calf injuries against Ireland the previous weekend. That double blow also forced Schmidt to deploy fullback Jock Campbell as an emergency reserve playmaker.

Donaldson may prove his fitness in time for the Italy fixture, but Schmidt is expected to call in specialist reinforcement. Veteran flyhalf Bernard Foley is available and is understood to be pursuing a return to the NSW Waratahs next season after a stint in Japan.

Meredith, for his part, is eager for another opportunity. Australia’s only win in their last ten Tests came against Japan, a statistic that frames just how much is riding on the trip to Perth.