Nations Championship · Round 1
Australia
Ireland
Allianz Stadium, Sydney
Championship Standings
The inaugural Nations Championship has no single league table — the six Six Nations sides form the 'Europe' group and the six Rugby Championship sides the 'Rest of the World' group, with each team playing all six opponents from the other group (three away in July, three at home in November) before a Finals Weekend at Twickenham on 27–29 November. This is the opening round, so every side starts on zero; the table below shows the two groups as they line up for kick-off.
| Pos | Team | P | W | L | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rest of the World | ||||||
| 1 |  South Africa | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2 |  New Zealand | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 3 |  Argentina | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 4 | Australia | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 5 |  Fiji | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 6 |  Japan | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Europe | ||||||
| 1 | Ireland | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2 |  France | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 3 |  England | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 4 |  Scotland | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 5 |  Italy | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 6 |  Wales | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
Australia
W1, L4Australia's most recent Test rugby was a chastening one — a winless four-match European tour to close 2025 in which they lost to England (25–7), Italy (26–19), Ireland (46–19) and France (48–33), shipping 145 points across the four. The only bright spot in their last five was a scrappy 19–15 win in Japan. Joe Schmidt's side arrive at this new season carrying that baggage, but with the caveat that it is a fresh campaign, a full Super Rugby Pacific behind the squad, and a sold-out home crowd to lift them.
Ireland
W4, L1Ireland were the second-best side in the 2026 Six Nations, winning four of five and losing only away to champions France (36–14). The pick of it was a 42–21 dismantling of England at Twickenham, and they signed off with a 43–21 rout of Scotland. This is a settled, in-form team — albeit one now assembled from a Leinster-heavy core, without the injured Caelan Doris and James Lowe — landing in Sydney with rhythm the hosts simply don't have yet.
Head-to-Head Record
7 – 0 – 8
Australia wins · Draws · Ireland wins (last 15 meetings)
Australia (7)The all-time series is close, but the recent trend is emphatically green. Ireland have won seven of the last eight meetings, including the last three in a row — a run capped by a 46–19 demolition in Dublin last November. Australia's only win in that stretch was the second Test of the 2018 series in Melbourne (18–9), and even that came in a series Ireland won 2–1. The Wallabies have to go back to 2010 for their last home win over Ireland.
Recent Results
| Date | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 2025 | Autumn Test | Ireland 46–19 Australia |
| Nov 2024 | Autumn Test | Ireland 22–19 Australia |
| Nov 2022 | Autumn Test | Ireland 13–10 Australia |
| Jun 2018 | Summer Series | Australia 18–9 Ireland |
| Jun 2018 | Summer Series | Australia 21–26 Ireland |
| Jun 2018 | Summer Series | Australia 16–20 Ireland |
Average score in the last 6 meetings: Across the last three meetings Ireland have averaged 27–16. Australia's only win in the last eight encounters was the 2018 Melbourne Test (18–9) — Ireland took that series 2–1 and have won every meeting since, several of them comfortably.
Extended Form
Australia5W, 9L
The last twelve months have been rough: a 21–18 escape against Fiji, a consolation third Test against the British & Irish Lions (22–12) after losing the series, a stunning 38–22 win in South Africa, a home win over Argentina, and a 19–15 grind in Japan — set against two defeats to New Zealand, losses to South Africa and Argentina, and a winless European tour (England, Italy, Ireland, France).
Australia can beat anyone on their day — that Johannesburg win over the Springboks proves the ceiling — but consistency has eluded them. The pattern is a team that competes for an hour then fades, undone by discipline and a lack of ruthlessness. Under Schmidt they are better organised than the results suggest, but the bare record is a side that loses far more than it wins.
Ireland5W, 2L
Since last July: a 46–19 win over Australia and a narrow 24–13 loss to South Africa in November, then a 2026 Six Nations of four wins — Italy (20–13), England (42–21), Wales (27–17) and Scotland (43–21) — with the only blemish an away defeat to France (36–14).
Ireland remain one of the top three sides in the world, beaten in the past year only by the two teams ranked above them, France and South Africa. They win the matches they are expected to and win them well. Depth is the mild concern on this tour — a raft of front-liners are rested or injured — but even a second-tier Irish XV is a formidable proposition.
Australia XV
Joe Schmidt — facing the side he coached to Grand Slams — springs a surprise by recalling Jock Campbell at fullback for his first Test in 1,316 days. Ryan Lonergan gets a maiden start at scrum-half alongside Carter Gordon, and Queensland lock Josh Canham makes his first Test start. Harry Wilson captains from No. 8 behind a loose trio completed by Rob Valetini and Fraser McReight. The bench carries serious weight: veteran James Slipper returns from Test retirement, Taniela Tupou adds scrummaging punch, and Brumbies lock Lachlan Shaw is in line for a debut.
Ireland XV
With Caelan Doris injured, hooker Dan Sheehan captains Ireland, packing down between Tom O'Toole and Tadhg Furlong. Sam Prendergast is rewarded with the No. 10 jersey after strong form, inside a settled Jamison Gibson-Park. Jack Conan wins his 60th cap at No. 8. Jamie Osborne comes in on the wing to cover the absent James Lowe, with Hugo Keenan at fullback and the trusted Ringrose–McCloskey midfield. Tadhg Beirne returns from a knee injury among a strong bench that also holds Rónan Kelleher, Craig Casey and Bundee Aki.
Key Matchups
The decisive battleground is the breakdown and the halves. Australia's threats — Suaalii's aerial and carrying power, Jorgensen's finishing — depend on fast, front-foot ball, and behind a new-look half-back pairing of the debutant Lonergan and the still-developing Carter Gordon, that supply is far from guaranteed against a Josh van der Flier-led jackal threat. Ireland's edge is control: Gibson-Park and Sam Prendergast should dictate territory and squeeze the hosts into their own half, where Australia's discipline has repeatedly cracked. If the Wallabies win the collision early and get Suaalii running downhill, this can be a contest; if Ireland strangle the game, it becomes a familiar afternoon.
Match Forecast
Ireland should win this. The form gap is stark — a 4-1 Six Nations side against a Wallaby team whose last outing was a winless European tour that included a 46–19 hiding by these very opponents — and the head-to-head is one-way traffic, Ireland having taken seven of the last eight. With Gibson-Park and Sam Prendergast to control territory and a set piece that shades the hosts, the visitors have the tools to strangle the game and pull clear in the second half, as they have done repeatedly in this fixture.
The counter is real, though. This is a fresh season and a sold-out Sydney crowd, Joe Schmidt knows Ireland's every pattern intimately, and Australia have the individual strike — Suaalii, Jorgensen, Valetini — to punish any Irish sloppiness on the back of a long-haul tour opener. If the Wallabies win the collisions early and feed their runners quick ball, they can keep this within a score. But their discipline and game-management have failed them too often for a full 80, and Ireland's ceiling and floor are both higher.
Ireland by 10–16 — Australia's home crowd and strike runners make it a contest for an hour before the visitors' control tells.