Australia 84-0 Scotland: Addo-Carr stars in Kangaroos rout in Coventry
Australia put sorry Scotland to the sword with a 84-0 victory in Coventry.
It went wrong from the moment Bailey Hayward put his foot on the dead ball line while catching the kick-off for Scotland, who were no match for the Kangaroos.
Flying winger Josh Addo-Carr and Campbell Graham bagged hat-tricks as they ran in 15 tries in front of 10,276 fans.
Hayward’s mistake immediately put the underdogs on the back foot when it could have been so different, had he had the foresight to put his foot over the line first.
The procession didn’t start immediately, as the video referee denied Nathan Cleary an early try – with Alex Walker just managing to ground a loose ball in goal.
Australia had to wait six minutes for their opening try, Cleary on his international debut creating space for Addo-Carr to score his first outside Lachlan Walmsley in the left corner.
After Jack Wighton dived over for 10-0, Australia got a third try when Walmsley dropped a high kick and although Harry Grant was illegally held back in chasing the loose ball, it mattered little as Angus Crichton touched down.
The tries came at regular intervals until half-time. Graham, who could have been lining up for the Bravehearts had he not had a late call up from Mal Meninga, powered through four tacklers despite being isolated on the right flank for his first try.
Cleary then danced through to go under the posts as Australia were keeping up with scoring a point a minute at 28-0.
Even a trip on Addo-Carr couldn’t prevent him searing 50 metres down the left for his second, and Wighton also got a second try before the break, backing up on the right.
Dominance continues after the break
Leading 40-0 at half time, Australia scored off the first set of the second half with captain James Tedesco getting in on the act, first making a break down the middle and then taking on a Ben Hunt offload to score.
They went back to back as Hunt got a try of his own to make it 52-0, and Scotland had to wait seven minutes to even touch the ball in the second half.
That didn’t halt the Kangaroos though, with Scotland coughing up possession and from the resulting scrum, Addo-Carr seared down the left touchline to bring up his hat-trick.
Having conceded three tries in the first nine minutes of the second half, Scotland then dug in and made Australia wait 11 minutes for their next score.
Cheers greeted Ben Hellewell’s tackle that grounded Matt Burton short on the left, but Scotland’s night was made even harder when Kane Linnett was sinbinned for pulling back Cameron Munster and denying a near certain try.
Australia immediately made the extra man count as Graham went over on the hour mark.
Graham would later grab a hat-trick to mark an extraordinary occasion for him, playing in Coventry his mother’s birthplace against the home nation of his father, either side of scores for Burton and Penrith Grand Final winner Isaah Yeo.
The final word had to go to Addo-Carr, who may well end up the star of the tournament, as he won the race to his own kick in the far corner after an extraordinary piece of skill to keep the ball in play by Burton.
Scotland round off their campaign against Fiji, while Australia take on Italy.
FT: Australia 84-0 Scotland
Scotland: Walker, Walmsley, Hellewell, Buchanan, Russell, Gahan, Hayward, Bayliss-Brow, Hood, Teanby, Aitken, Linnett, Bell. Subs: Schneider, Bain, Graham, Ferguson.
Australia: Tedesco, Graham, Wighton, Burton, Addo-Carr, Munster, Cleary, Campbell-Gillard, Grant, Carrigan, Crichton, Martin, Yeo. Subs: Hunt, Collins, Holmes, Trbojevic.
Tries: Addo-Carr 4, Wighton 2, Crichton, Graham 3, Cleary, Tedesco, Hunt, Burton, Yeo. Goals: Cleary 12/15