History of rugby union matches between Australia and Wales explained

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.

Summary

Overview

DetailsPlayedWon by
Australia
Won by
Wales
DrawnAustralia pointsWales points
In Australia141310437216
In Wales2918101613479
Neutral venue523088115
Overall48331411,138810

Records

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

RecordAustraliaWales
Longest winning streak13 (28 Nov 2009 – 10 Nov 2018)3 (21 Jun 1969 – 11 Jun 1978; 10 Nov 2018 – 26 Nov 2022)
Largest points for
Home63 (22 July 1991)34 (26 November 2022)
Away39 (26 November 2022)40 (24 September 2023)
Largest winning margin
Home57 (22 July 1991)25 (20 December 1975)
Away35 (12 October 1991)34 (24 September 2023)

History

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

No.DateVenueScoreWinnerCompetition
112 December 1908National Stadium, Cardiff9–61908–09 Australia tour of Great Britain
226 November 1927National Stadium, Cardiff8–181927–28 Waratahs tour of Europe and North America
320 December 1947National Stadium, Cardiff6–0
44 January 1958National Stadium, Cardiff9–31957–58 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and France
53 December 1966National Stadium, Cardiff11–141966–67 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and France
621 June 1969Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney16–191969 Wales tour of Australia, New Zealand and Fiji
710 November 1973National Stadium, Cardiff24–01973 Australia tour of Great Britain and Italy
820 December 1975National Stadium, Cardiff28–3
911 June 1978Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane18–81978 Wales tour of Australia
1017 June 1978Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney19–17
115 December 1981National Stadium, Cardiff18–131981–82 Australia tour of Great Britain and Ireland
1224 November 1984National Stadium, Cardiff9–281984 Australia tour of Great Britain and Ireland
1318 June 1987Rotorua Int. Stadium, Rotorua (New Zealand)21–22 1987 Rugby World Cup
1422 July 1991Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane63–6 1991 Wales tour of Australia
1512 October 1991National Stadium, Cardiff3–38 1991 Rugby World Cup
1621 November 1992National Stadium, Cardiff6–23 1992 Australia tour of Great Britain and Ireland
179 June 1996Ballymore Stadium, Brisbane56–25 1996 Wales tour of Australia
1822 June 1996Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney42–3
191 December 1996National Stadium, Cardiff19–28 1996 Australia tour of Great Britain, Ireland and Italy
2023 October 1999Millennium Stadium, Cardiff9–24 1999 Rugby World Cup
2125 November 2001Millennium Stadium, Cardiff13–21 2001 Australia tour of Europe
2214 June 2003Stadium Australia, Sydney30–10 2003 Wales tour of Australia and New Zealand
2326 November 2005Millennium Stadium, Cardiff24–22 2005 Autumn International
244 November 2006Millennium Stadium, Cardiff29–29 draw2006 Autumn International
2526 May 2007Stadium Australia, Sydney29–23 2007 Wales tour of Australia
262 June 2007Lang Park, Brisbane31–0
2715 September 2007Millennium Stadium, Cardiff20–32 2007 Rugby World Cup
2829 November 2008Millennium Stadium, Cardiff21–18 2008 Autumn International
2928 November 2009Millennium Stadium, Cardiff12–33 2009 Autumn International
306 November 2010Millennium Stadium, Cardiff16–25 2010 Autumn International
3121 October 2011Eden Park, Auckland (New Zealand)21–18 2011 Rugby World Cup
323 December 2011Millennium Stadium, Cardiff18–24 2011 Autumn International
339 June 2012Lang Park, Brisbane27–19 2012 Wales tour of Australia
3416 June 2012Docklands Stadium, Melbourne25–23
3523 June 2012Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney20–19
361 December 2012Millennium Stadium, Cardiff12–142012 Autumn International
3730 November 2013Millennium Stadium, Cardiff26–30 2013 Autumn International
388 November 2014Millennium Stadium, Cardiff28–332014 Autumn International
3910 October 2015Twickenham Stadium, London (England)15–62015 Rugby World Cup
405 November 2016Millennium Stadium, Cardiff8–322016 Autumn International
4111 November 2017Millennium Stadium, Cardiff21–29 2017 Autumn International
4210 November 2018Millennium Stadium, Cardiff9–62018 Autumn International
4329 September 2019Tokyo Stadium Chōfu (Japan)25–292019 Rugby World Cup
4420 November 2021Millennium Stadium, Cardiff29–282021 Autumn International
4526 November 2022 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff34–392022 Autumn International
4624 September 2023 Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon (France)6–402023 Rugby World Cup
476 July 2024Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney25–162024 Wales tour of Australia
4813 July 2024Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, Melbourne36–28

List of series

YearAustraliaWalesSeries winnerJames Bevan Trophy
197820rowspan=2 align=center
199620
200720align=center colspan=2
201230align=center colspan=2
202420align=center colspan=2

External links