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History of rugby union matches between Australia and Wales

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Since 1908 Australia and Wales have competed against each other in rugby union in 48 matches, Australia having won 33, Wales 14, with 1 draw. Since 2007 the teams have competed for the James Bevan Trophy, which was created to celebrate 100 years of rugby between the two nations.[1]

Summary

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Overview

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Details Played Won by
Australia
Won by
Wales
Drawn Australia points Wales points
In Australia 14 13 1 0 437 216
In Wales 29 18 10 1 613 479
Neutral venue 5 2 3 0 88 115
Overall 48 33 14 1 1,138 810

Records

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Note: Date shown in brackets indicates when the record was or last set.

Record Australia Wales
Longest winning streak 13 (28 Nov 2009 – 10 Nov 2018) 3 (21 Jun 1969 – 11 Jun 1978; 10 Nov 2018 – 26 Nov 2022)
Largest points for
Home 63 (22 July 1991) 34 (26 November 2022)
Away 39 (26 November 2022) 40 (24 September 2023)
Largest winning margin
Home 57 (22 July 1991) 25 (20 December 1975)
Away 35 (12 October 1991) 34 (24 September 2023)

History

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In the first 70 years, Wales won six of the eight matches. Over the next 10 years it was fairly even, but since the first World Cup in 1987, Australia has dominated by 26 wins to 6. The 2006 match ended in the second highest-scoring draw of all time, 29–29.

Australia snatched victory in the inaugural James Bevan Trophy test match 29–23 with a last minute try at the Telstra Stadium in Sydney on 26 May 2007. They followed this up with a 31–0 victory at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.

Wales captured the trophy the following year with a 21–18 victory in Cardiff, but since then it remained in Australian hands with 13 consecutive wins. Three victories in Cardiff in 2009–11 were followed up by a 3–0 series win in Australia in 2012, all by narrow margins. In the return match at Cardiff, Australia once again won with a last minute try.

The 2011 Rugby World Cup brought Australia and Wales together again for another third-place play-off, and once again it was a close finish, with Australia claiming third place in a reversal of the first World Cup in 1987, when Wales won the play-off 22–21.

Wales ended a run of 13 consecutive defeats against Australia on 10 November 2018, winning 9–6. They have since defeated Australia 29–25 in the 2019 Rugby World Cup, 29–28 in Cardiff on 20 November 2021 and a record 40-6 in the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

Results

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No. Date Venue Score Winner Competition
1 12 December 1908 National Stadium, Cardiff 9–6  Wales 1908–09 Australia tour of Great Britain
2 26 November 1927 National Stadium, Cardiff 8–18  Australia 1927–28 Waratahs tour of Europe and North America
3 20 December 1947 National Stadium, Cardiff 6–0  Wales 1947–48 Australia tour of Europe and North America
4 4 January 1958 National Stadium, Cardiff 9–3  Wales 1957–58 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and France
5 3 December 1966 National Stadium, Cardiff 11–14  Australia 1966–67 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and France
6 21 June 1969 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney 16–19  Wales 1969 Wales tour of Australia, New Zealand and Fiji
7 10 November 1973 National Stadium, Cardiff 24–0  Wales 1973 Australia tour of Great Britain and Italy
8 20 December 1975 National Stadium, Cardiff 28–3  Wales 1975–76 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and North America
9 11 June 1978 Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane 18–8  Australia 1978 Wales tour of Australia
10 17 June 1978 Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney 19–17  Australia
11 5 December 1981 National Stadium, Cardiff 18–13  Wales 1981–82 Australia tour of Great Britain and Ireland
12 24 November 1984 National Stadium, Cardiff 9–28  Australia 1984 Australia tour of Great Britain and Ireland
13 18 June 1987 Rotorua Int. Stadium, Rotorua (New Zealand) 21–22  Wales 1987 Rugby World Cup
14 22 July 1991 Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane 63–6  Australia 1991 Wales tour of Australia
15 12 October 1991 National Stadium, Cardiff 3–38  Australia 1991 Rugby World Cup
16 21 November 1992 National Stadium, Cardiff 6–23  Australia 1992 Australia tour of Great Britain and Ireland
17 9 June 1996 Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane 56–25  Australia 1996 Wales tour of Australia
18 22 June 1996 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney 42–3  Australia
19 1 December 1996 National Stadium, Cardiff 19–28  Australia 1996 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and Italy
20 23 October 1999 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 9–24  Australia 1999 Rugby World Cup
21 25 November 2001 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 13–21  Australia 2001 Australia tour of Europe
22 14 June 2003 Stadium Australia, Sydney 30–10  Australia 2003 Wales tour of Australia and New Zealand
23 26 November 2005 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 24–22  Wales 2005 Autumn International
24 4 November 2006 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 29–29 draw 2006 Autumn International
25 26 May 2007 Stadium Australia, Sydney 29–23  Australia 2007 Wales tour of Australia
26 2 June 2007 Lang Park, Brisbane 31–0  Australia
27 15 September 2007 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 20–32  Australia 2007 Rugby World Cup
28 29 November 2008 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 21–18  Wales 2008 Autumn International
29 28 November 2009 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 12–33  Australia 2009 Autumn International
30 6 November 2010 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 16–25  Australia 2010 Autumn International
31 21 October 2011 Eden Park, Auckland (New Zealand) 21–18  Australia 2011 Rugby World Cup
32 3 December 2011 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 18–24  Australia 2011 Autumn International
33 9 June 2012 Lang Park, Brisbane 27–19  Australia 2012 Wales tour of Australia
34 16 June 2012 Docklands Stadium, Melbourne 25–23  Australia
35 23 June 2012 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney 20–19  Australia
36 1 December 2012 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 12–14  Australia 2012 Autumn International
37 30 November 2013 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 26–30  Australia 2013 Autumn International
38 8 November 2014 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 28–33  Australia 2014 Autumn International
39 10 October 2015 Twickenham Stadium, London (England) 15–6  Australia 2015 Rugby World Cup
40 5 November 2016 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 8–32  Australia 2016 Autumn International
41 11 November 2017 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 21–29  Australia 2017 Autumn International
42 10 November 2018 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 9–6  Wales 2018 Autumn International
43 29 September 2019 Tokyo Stadium Chōfu (Japan) 25–29  Wales 2019 Rugby World Cup
44 20 November 2021 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 29–28  Wales 2021 Autumn International
45 26 November 2022 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 34–39  Australia 2022 Autumn International
46 24 September 2023 Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon (France) 6–40  Wales 2023 Rugby World Cup
47 6 July 2024 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney 25–16  Australia 2024 Wales tour of Australia
48 13 July 2024 Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, Melbourne 36–28  Australia

List of series

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Played Won by
Australia
Won by
Wales
Drawn
4 4 0 0
Year Australia Wales Series winner James Bevan Trophy
1978 2 0  Australia Not awarded
1996 2 0  Australia
2007 2 0  Australia
2012 3 0  Australia
2024 2 0  Australia

References

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  1. ^ James Bevan Trophy unveiled in Sydney, Welsh Rugby Union, 2007-05-24
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