Ben McCalman of the Wallabies is tackled (Photo: Getty Images)

By Tupuola Terry Tavita

Manu Samoa did not just beat the Wallabies, they beat them up. In rugby terms, they took down the cane and gave them a good old fashioned flogging.

It was evident from the start when Samoa raced to a 17-0 lead – in just 20 minutes – that this is one scalp they were never going to give up. And for 80 minutes, they had their foot on the Wallabies throat, and never let go.

From the get-go, Samoa won the kick-off and when a penalty ensued, flyhalf Tusi Pisi calmly slotted it over for the first points. At the ten-minute mark, the ball popped out of a Wallabies forward drive and Mapusua slipped it under the legs to Alesana Tuilagi who found complete daylight on the left flank.

The Wallabies probably needed a dump truck to stop him. Again, flyhalf Pisi landed the easy conversion.

Leading 10-0, the feeling was the Wallabies – packed with seasoned Super Rugby campaigners – would turn the tide. Instead of kicking for goal – on three consecutive penalties – they opted for the lineout.

They never got over the paint as raid-after-raid was repulsed by the aggressive Samoan defense.

On just the second foray into Wallabies territory, Mapusua short of options kicked through a grubber which was taken by debutant fullback who took fotrever to clear.

The kick was charged down by fullback Paul Williams who pounced on it over the try line.

At 17-0, the Wallabies fired back with some good forward play near the Samoan line and a cynical hands-in-the-ruck offense by lock Daniel Leo saw him yellow carded.

The Wallabies wielded the ensuing scrum and a pop pass to wing Digby Ioane saw him dot down under the sticks. The Wallabies landed another penalty late in the half as Williams was pinned for a shoulder-charge on flyhalf Matt Giteau.

Still a man down, Williams fielded an errant clearance from Giteau and took on the chasers. The ball was recycled back and some strong running from flank Taiaina Tuifua and number eight George Stowers put lock Kane Thompson in the clear for Samoa’s third try.

Moments later, the ball was flung wide again to Tuilagi who put in a weighted kick near the Australian line. His opposite, debutant Rod Davies – who was completely outplayed all day – could not regather. The Samoan chasers pounded on him and amid the debris of bodies, center George Pisi grounded the ball on the line, video official confirmed. When older brother Tusi landed the conversion things looked ominous for the Wallabies. The scoreboard read 29-16. Playmakers Kurtley Beale and Will Genia were rushed off the bench and provided some needed oomph to the Wallabies attack. But it was too little too late. Pisi landed another penalty and Giteau scored a consolation try thanks to an up-and-under and slip-pass by replacement forward Scott Higginbotham. For the last ten minutes, Samoa stoically defended their line and, at times, put the Wallabies on the backfoot. At the final whistle, the huge Samoan contingent in the stands erupted as the team celebrated its first win against the Wallabies. Player rating- Samoa  

15.   Paul Williams – 8 – didn’t do anything wrong. Solid under the high ball, strong running and great defensive play

14.   Sailosi Tagicakibau – 6 - quiet on a busy day, didn’t see much ball but could’ve gone looking for it.

13.   George Pisi – 8 – great energy from the center

12.   Seilala Mapusua – 9 – at the heart of the midfield offence and defence. Mr Reliable stamped his class again with some massive hits, executed turnovers and formed an impressive midfield partnership with George Pisi.

11.   Alesana Tuilagi – 9 – a monster test from the juggernaut wing. Completely destroyed his opposite Rod Davies. Has a bag of tricks to boot, scored a runaway try, need we say more?

10.   Tusi Pisi  – 8 – not since Darren Kellet has there been a better performance at flyhalf. Had an excellent positional kicking game and his 12 points from the boot kept the scoreboard ticking over.

9.     Kahn Fotuali’i – 8 – bar an errant touch finder late in the game, had a very good all-around game. Quick service delivery, incisive running and excellent organisation at ruck-and-maul

8.     George Stowers – 8 – perhaps his best game to date. Solid off the back of the scrum, tackled ferociously and never took a backward step from the rough stuff

7.   Maurie Fa’asavalu – 8 - outplayed and outshone his more fancied opposites. Quick at the breakdown, ran strongly over the gain line and an ankle tap on Davies led to a Samoan try.

6.     Taiasina Tuifu’a – 8 – worked tirelessly under the radar. Solid on defence, especially at collision area, broke the line several times at go forward ball. All in all, a solid prospect for years to come.

5.     Daniel Leo – 8 – made a nuisance of himself like any good lock. Disruptive at opposition ball and secured at lineout ball. We wont hold the yellow card against him

4.     Kane Thompson – 8 – a third rover/flanker, he was all over the field. A lineout winner capped off with a good try.

3.     Anthony Perenise – 8 – scrum work was fair but probably needs to bulk up some more. Good all round play popping up with ball in hand at go forward ruck.

2.     Mahonri Schwalger – 8 – does a lot of work at the trenches. Tough and unfancied, led his team from the front.

1. Sakaria Taulafo – 8 – Solid scrummager. Kept the wolves, er, wallabies at bay.

17.   Census Johnston – 7 – solid, when he came on

18.   Filipo Lavea Levi – 7 – subbed on for Leo, didn’t do much, didn’t do anything wrong

19.   Manaia Salavea – 7 – showed some flashes of the good stuff when he came on

20.   Brenton Helleur  – 6 – a cameo, unrated

21.   Eliota Fuimaono Sapolu – 6 – a cameo, unrated

Ratings Scale:

10 – A legendary performance to go down in the history books

9 – Outstanding performance: Man of the match shoo-in

8 – Excellent all round game

7 – Good game with a few sparkles

6 – Solid performance

5 – Average – ho hum

4 – Below par

3 – Had a bad game

2 – Goodbye

1 – A complete joke

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Palemia Ugapo

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