Springboks complacency and questionable officiating add to the excitement of a famous Wallabies triumph.BY TREVINE RODRIGO IN MELBOURNE. (eLanka Sports Editor).
If there ever was a time for Wallabies fans to get that elated feeling they are on their way up to the top of world Rugby rankings once more, last night was it.
Playing against the best team in the world, and the benchmark of the modern game, a fighting unit of men in Green and Gold stunned the Rugby world with a show of self belief and uncompromising defiance to hold off a fast finishing Springboks thriving on a team reduced to 11 men for the last fifteen minutes.
Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus should be dwelling on his overconfidence of starting with his bench strength, rather than the established world beaters in the team.
Instead, he chose to deflect his team’s loss at questionable officiating and the time clock which was quite humorous and didn’t win him many fans.
He will rue his brash underestimation of a fiesty opponent.
In his post match comments he grudgingly acknowledged Australia’s success, choosing to ignore the fact that the Springboks counter offensive actually eventuated after questionable TMO control of the game reduced the Wallabies to 11 men for the last ten minutes.
It begs the question that if three qualified officials controlled the game, why so much intervention by the TMO was necessary, as it clearly undermines the Referee and the linesmen and their qualification to officiate a game. 
It brought back memories of the last World Cup where an overkill of TMO interference made the tournament a farce apart from several time wasting stoppages. .
A review of TMO involvement by the IRB is pertinent at this juncture to keep the game flowing and allow for some human error by the officiating personnel or give them one captains challenge utilised in the NRL.
The Wallabies pounced on the luxury of the Springboks starting line-up to post 24 points to 17 by the half snapping the Springboks into desperate action by replacing eight of the best to counter and stem the unexpected tide.
It was too little too late to contain the pumped up Wallabies who showed true grit and a wonderful chemistry that gallantly thwarted several potential threats to their try line.
The Wallabies controlled at least sixty minutes of the game, thrilling a near sell-out of 54, 678 crowd at Optus Stadium in Perth.
The much feared Springboks ‘Bomb Squad’ for once faced up to a new challenger as the Wallabies brave forwards matched them in intensity throwing their bodies like battering rams at their opponents.
Tanalia Tupo, Bell, Skipper Harry Wilson, Rob Valentini Hunter Paisami and the rest stood strong as a defiant eight, against a feared opponent.
The Wallabies refused to be intimidated by the scrummaging that decimated the All Blacks in South Africa recently as they held them admirably. The battle up front was unrelenting.
The difference in the end was a superior Wallabies backline spearheaded by scrum half Ryan Lonergan, Max Jorgensen, Len Ikitau and Tom Wright who were opportunistic, instinctive and dangerous in broken play.
South Africa’s backline led by playmaker Handre Pollard were dangerous at times but not as effective as they have been.
A penalty each way opened the scoring before South Africa took the lead with a try by hooker Johan Grobbelaar off a damaging rolling maul.
The Wallabies replied soon after when Len Ikitau scampered through a Springbok defence caught flat-footed to level things.
Ikitau was over again after a relentless onslaught by the Wallabies resulting in Fly half Ben Donaldson making the opening for him to beat the defence.
The 17-10 lead was short lived when the Springboks exposed the Wallabies defence resulting in winger Edwill Van der Merwe beating the defence to level things at 17-17.
The Wallabies took control from there on with a Donaldson try to give them a 24-17 lead at the half.
With the hurried injection of the Springboks best team for the second half, the Wallabies held their own stretching the margin to two penalties by Ryan Lonergan and a try to skipper Harry Wilson giving them a handy 37- 17 lead by the 58th minute.
Max Jorgensen then used his uncanny knack of instinctive opportunism by intercepting a pass between the Springboks backs, sprinting 60 meters downfield untouched.
At 42-17 in the 64th minute, it seemed the game was done and dusted, but the spate of yellow cards resulting in the Wallabies reduced to 11 men sparked a surge from the desperate Springboks who scored twice in the 69th minute and in the 71st minute when scrum half Lonergan was rightly penalised for disrupting a scrum surge to the try line and was yellow carded and a penalty try awarded. 42-38.
It was a tense last few minutes as the Wallabies hung on tenaciously to pull off a sensational victory.
Ten minutes of mayhem in the closing stages, saw the brave men in Green and Gold reduced to 11 with four yellow cards, hang on despite the odds to give coach Les Kiss a victory he will cherish for a lifetime.
Skipper Harry Wilson, lock Hunter Paisami, winger Joseph-Akuso Suaalii and Ryan Lonergan were sent off with at least two decisions contentious.
Never write off these emerging Wallabies. They are primed for greater things when they host the World Cup next year.
Kiss has five from five wins since taking over from Joe Schmidt.
Rassie Erasmus will not make that costly mistake when they meet next and it will be interesting to see if it makes s noticeable difference.
The win also moved the Wallabies to sixth place in the world rankings.
