Rugby Championship Round One Team of the Week: Wallabies dominate XV after all-time comeback against Springboks

The 2025 Rugby Championship kicked off with two thrilling clashes.

In Johannesburg, Australia pulled off one of their greatest Test wins, overturning a 22-0 deficit to beat defending champions South Africa 38-22 at Ellis Park, their first win there since 1963.

The Springboks dominated early with tries from Kurt-Lee Arendse, Andre Esterhuizen and Siya Kolisi, but a resilient Wallabies side, led by captain Harry Wilson’s double, stormed back with six unanswered tries.

Later in Cordoba, New Zealand reclaimed the world number one ranking with a 41-24 victory over Argentina.

The All Blacks raced to a 31-10 halftime lead, then held off a spirited Pumas comeback before two late tries from Samisoni Taukei’aho sealed the win.

Here is Charlie Elliott’s Team of the Week from the first weekend of the action.

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15. Tom Wright

Wright’s first 20 minutes were tough to watch, full of mistakes and a missed tackle that handed the Boks their opening try. But to his credit, he didn’t hide and grew into the game.

He found his rhythm, burst through the line to set up Harry Wilson’s second try, and later crossed the line himself to seal the win.

His try almost seemed to happen in slow motion as he stepped the final defender to send Wallabies fans everywhere into raptures and finish off a remarkable comeback for the ages.

14. Max Jorgensen

Born in Sheffield, Jorgensen really does feel like one that got away for England, because the young winger is continuously showing that he can make something out of nothing and is one of the most potent in his position in the world.

His brilliant try with 15 minutes to go showcased just that ability and put the Wallabies in a commanding position that they never looked back from.

Australia’s backline looks set for the future, and Jorgensen will be a key part of that.

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13. Joseph-Aukuso Sua’ali’i

Possibly the player with the highest ceiling in this Wallabies side, the league convert is still raw and still has areas to improve on, but is such an exciting talent who can change a game by himself.

He raced through and dotted down after intercepting Manie Libbok’s pass just before the 60-minute mark to really kickstart the comeback and shift the momentum in the Wallabies’ favour.

Showed lots of ability on the ball overall, but still has some work to do off it.

12. Len Ikitau

The recent Exeter Chiefs signing complemented Sua’ali’i perfectly with a great blend of potent attacking play and some solid defensive work to cover for his outside centre.

Kept trying to make inroads with the ball in hand and had a big part to play in Dylan Pietsch’s try, overall just putting in an extremely solid performance that deserves its plaudits.

His substitution due to injury is slightly worrying, and hopefully it isn’t too serious.

11. Dylan Pietsch

Got Australia off the mark following a nice move with the aforementioned Ikitau, and in many ways kept the Wallabies in the game after their turgid first half.

His play seemed to give his side the confidence that they could go toe-to-toe with the Springboks, which is why he is in this team despite a relatively limited cameo that ended just over half an hour into the match.

There also wasn’t a whole host of other backline quality elsewhere, which helps him out.

10. Tomas Albornoz

Everything Albornoz did against the All Blacks had a calm, deliberate quality, from his silky hands that opened up space to a solo try where he broke one tackle and went past three more.

His left boot was a lethal weapon, landing three conversions and a penalty. Back after a rest, he made an immediate difference.

He led Argentina in carries with 14, even out-gaining Ardie Savea with ball in hand.

9. Nic White

It was a performance that came out of nowhere from Nic White, no less so than because he had retired just a few weeks ago, and came back specifically to help the Wallabies out, given their lack of depth at scrum-half.

He started off, unfortunately, with a missed tackle in the 20-minute onslaught that the Boks had, which led to a try, but eventually his experience showed.

White did exactly what a good scrum-half should and controlled the tempo extremely well, while keeping mistakes to a minimum.

1. Ethan de Groot

A lot of the All Blacks’ joy came courtesy of having a strong pack that pushed Los Pumas back and kept things tight defensively.

Key in that defensive effort was loosehead de Groot, who amassed ten tackles in his 49-minute spell, also anchoring a dominant scrum that Argentina couldn’t cope with.

His performance won’t steal any headlines, but it was very good.

2. Codie Taylor

Another who put in an excellent display in just 49 minutes for the All Blacks was hooker Taylor, who did exactly what was asked of him and completed all ten of his lineout throws.

Taylor also tried to get involved around the pitch and had a decent amount of success both defensively and offensively. Again, not a headline-grabber, but a very good shift.

3. Taniela Tupou

Arguably, the most surprising thing about the Wallabies’ performance was the fact that they held their own physically against a Springboks side revered globally for their strength.

Tupou went up against the world-class Ox Nche and came out unscathed, holding his own against one of the best scrummagers in the entire world.

Didn’t do much else aside from that, but the forward pack was just as crucial for Australia as the electric backs were.

4. Will Skelton

What an absolute unit. As mentioned, Australia’s physicality really made a difference, and unsurprisingly, Skelton was a big part of that.

He was just a massive physical presence and a focal point for his side to work off of, which is an underrated role from possibly the biggest man in rugby.

Eben Etzebeth looked good too, with a lot of tackles, but Skelton benefited from being on the winning side.

5. Pedro Rubiolo

Rubiolo managed to make the most tackles in the entire game with 15 and went about his business in a quiet but productive fashion.

Considering the lack of attention put on him, the fact that he managed to be one of the most impactful players for Los Pumas is a testament to his ability to go the hard yards.

Bristol Bears appear to have a gem on their hands.

6. Siya Kolisi

It was well-documented that Kolisi was starting at No.8 for the first time in a Test match, but in reality, his role was pretty close to what has been seen previously, as alluded to by Rassie Erasmus pre-match.

Started the game in typical Kolisi fashion with some very strong carrying and a try during the 20-minute Springboks dominance.

Came off after 46 minutes with the Boks still in a commanding lead, and the demise came with him off the pitch. Make of that what you will.

7. Fraser McReight

Another Wallaby who started relatively poorly but grew into the match and ended on a massive high, McReight seemed to struggle early on with the power and intensity of the game.

Eventually, though, he settled down and was very good at the breakdown, winning a crucial turnover that in many ways secured the win for his team with just under ten minutes to go.

8. Harry Wilson

Wilson had a quiet first half, full of effort but short on impact. After the break, though, he came to life.

He finished two tries, the first set up by a storming run from Angus Bell, the second off Tom Wright’s electric break.

While his carries still lack a bit of punch when compared to the Boks, this was a captain’s knock when it mattered. A performance full of intent and a timely reminder of his value to the side.

By Charlie Elliott

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