Ten minutes of madness: How the Wallabies beat the Boks with 11 men

September 28, 2026 — 12:00pm

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Wallabies coach Les Kiss prides himself on having every detail covered when preparing his teams.

Ahead of facing the Springboks in Perth on Sunday night, Kiss had challenged his side to work on contingency plans, such as losing five-eighth Ben Donaldson while not having an experienced playmaker in reserve. That would have been a simple scenario to deal with compared to what actually took place.

Ultimately, nothing could have prepared Kiss or his team for the 10 minutes and 30 seconds of madness that ended the Test match against South Africa.

The Wallabies led by 25 points before yellow cards to Harry Wilson, Ryan Lonergan, Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii and Hunter Paisami left the team with 11 players against the world champions. Here’s how the Wallabies hung on and won the Test.

69th and 70th minutes: 18-point lead. Wilson and Lonergan yellow cards

Wilson had enjoyed one of his best Test performances until referee Andrea Piardi gave him a yellow card for a high tackle on South African hooker Malcolm Marx.

Wilson was his team’s top tackler, making 13 and not missing one. Marx dipped late, and Wilson made glancing high contact. He left the field with just over 10 minutes left on the clock.

With Wilson absent and the Wallabies pack weakened, South Africa took full advantage a minute later.

The Springbok scrum was metres away from the Australian line with centre Hunter Paisami packing down in Wilson’s place.........

© The Sydney Morning Herald