Following the conclusion of the 2025 Autumn Nations Series, we update you on the state of the participating nations. Next up, it’s Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies.
After a 2-1 series defeat to the British & Irish Lions and a Rugby Championship campaign which saw them finishing in third position in the four-nation tournament, it was imperative for the Wallabies to improve their fortunes on their 2025 end-of-year tour of Europe.
Despite winning just two out of six matches in the Rugby Championship, those triumphs were momentous and morale-boosting results – against the Springboks and Argentina – which gave them some confidence ahead of the eagerly anticipated Autumn Nations Series.
Their end-of-year campaign got underway against Japan in Tokyo before they headed to Europe, where there were tricky assignments against England, Italy, Ireland and France lying in wait.
Things did not go according to plan as they only managed to beat Japan.
That means Schmidt is now at a crossroads with more questions than answers ahead of the Wallabies‘ 2026 international campaign, which will see him taking his side into World Rugby’s new Nations Championship, before handing over the coaching reins to Les Kiss in the build-up to the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia.
Autumn Nations Series summary
After their indifferent form during the course of the 2025 international season, the Wallabies came into their Autumn Nations Series campaign with plenty to prove and unfortunately, they will be far from happy that they ultimately failed to do that.
They kicked off their year-end tour against Japan in Tokyo, which was a significant encounter as it was the first time the Wallabies would face their former head coach, Eddie Jones, since he resigned from that position. This, after he guided the side during their disastrous 2023 Rugby World Cup campaign.
Current Australia boss Schmidt opted to select an under-strength side and a new captain in Nick Champion de Crespigny to face the Brave Blossoms, and although the Wallabies had to dig deep, they eventually clinched a 19-15 victory with Champion de Crespigny, Josh Flook and Carlo Tizzano scoring tries.
Following that fixture, the Wallabies headed over to Europe where they faced a daunting task against a fast-improving England outfit, who delivered a superb all-round performance en route to a comfortable 25-7 win at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham.
The Red Rose dominated for long periods, and Australia’s only try came when Harry Potter dotted down, after intercepting a Fraser Dingwall pass, late in the opening half.
That meant England held a narrow 10-7 lead at half-time, but the hosts dominated proceedings after the break and eventually cruised to victory.
Australia’s fortunes then nosedived further when they suffered a 26-19 defeat against the Azzurri in Udine the following week. It was only Italy’s second ever triumph over the Wallabies but it was a deserved one as they finished stronger and second-half five-pointers from Louis Lynagh and Monty Ioane sealed their win.
The Wallabies will be kicking themselves for losing this one as they held a 19-12 lead early in the second half courtesy of tries from Matt Faessler, Angus Bell and Carter Gordon, but lost their way before Italy took control of proceedings and clinched the result.
Australia’s next challenge was another tough one against Ireland at the Aviva Stadium, and Schmidt’s charges were always playing catch-up in that encounter as the home side raced into a 14-0 lead early in the opening half.
Although they did well to fight back with tries from Len Ikitau and Fraser McReight to trail 19-14 at half-time, Ireland came to the fore with a huge onslaught in the second half and sealed an emphatic 46-19 victory with Australia’s only points after the interval coming via a Billy Pollard five-pointer late on.
That left the Wallabies with their backs well and truly against the proverbial wall as they headed into their last game of the year, against France in Paris.
And although they put up a competitive display for most of that match, that was a microcosm of most of their performances during the season as they held their own for roughly 60 minutes – when France were holding a slender 27-26 lead – before falling away in the final quarter and eventually suffered a 46-33 loss.
In the end, Matt Faessler (2), Angus Bell, Max Jorgensen and Josh Nasser all crossed the whitewash for the visitors but, in the end, that defeat meant the Wallabies finished a European tour winless for the first time in 67 years.
Standout players
Although the Wallabies have not been at their best this year, one player who has been outstanding over the past 12 months is exciting inside centre Len Ikitau.
On current form, the 27-year-old is arguably the world’s best player in his position as he is brilliant with ball in hand and capable of unlocking the tightest defences in the game with his superb attacking skill-set.
Apart from that, Ikitau is also an accomplished defender and it was no surprise when he walked off with the John Eales Medal earlier this year as the Wallabies Player of the Year.
Not far behind Ikitau is brilliant openside flanker Fraser McReight, captain Harry Wilson and another exciting midfielder Joseph Akuso-Suaalii, who have all caught the eye with excellent performances during the year.
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Stat leaders
McReight was at the forefront of Australia’s defensive onslaught throughout the season and made more tackles than any other player at Test level this year.
The tearaway made a total of 172 hits in 14 matches, and his breakdown excellence was also rewarded as he finished in top spot for turnovers won (14) during the year.
Inspirational Wallabies skipper Harry Wilson was not far behind back-row partner McReight for tackles made as he finished in third place with 143 tackles made in 14 games.
Wilson was the player who led the way in ball carrying in the international arena in 2025, finishing with a whopping 147 carries made in 14 matches and just two more than his closest rival, All Blacks star Ardie Savea.
The Wallabies were well represented in that category as Ikitau finished in fifth position, after making 122 carries in 11 Tests, while Tom Hooper was in sixth spot (118 carries from 12 matches played).
Meanwhile, although he only represented his country in three Tests in 2025, fly-half Ben Donaldson was one of only two players in international rugby – along with Fiji playmaker Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula – who finished with a perfect 100% goal-kicking record this year.
Donaldson slotted five out of five kicks he attempted in Australia’s Test win over Fiji in Townsville and the Test defeat to the Lions in Brisbane, and the Wallabies’ victory over the famous touring team in Sydney.
Success story
With the 2027 Rugby World Cup set to be hosted in Australia and after winning just five out of 15 Tests in 2025, there were few success stories for the Wallabies this year.
However, despite that, and although they failed to register any victories on their tour of Europe, the centre combination between Ikitau and Suaalii has been one of the few positives for the Wallabies this year.
Both are brilliant attacking players, and it must be remembered that Ikitau was initially Australia’s first choice outside centre until Suaalii made the switch from rugby league and slotted in at number 13.
That meant Ikitau was shifted to inside centre but despite making that move, he has combined brilliantly with Suaalii.
Ikitau has shown that he can adapt his game as he is a creative playmaker who has the ability to unleash Suaalii on his outside and what makes their partnership exciting is the fact that it’s still a work in progress with plenty of room for improvement.
Main regret
The search for a top-class fly-half has become a common theme for the Wallabies in 2025, and with the likes of Noah Lolesio, Tom Lynagh, Ben Donaldson, James O’Connor and Tane Edmed all wearing the number 10 jersey at Test level this year, Carter Gordon returned to rugby union, after a brief stint with NRL outfit the Gold Coast Titans.
Gordon signed a new deal with Rugby Australia and the Queensland Reds through until 2028, and although he missed the first two matches of the year-end tour against Japan and England, due to a quad injury, he made his return to the 15-a-side game when he was included in the starting line-up for the clash with Italy.
The exciting playmaker showed his class in that clash as he crossed for a try and helped the Wallabies take a deserved 19-12 before his injury flared up again and he was forced off the field in the 55th minute.
With Gordon off the field, the Wallabies lost their way and eventually lost that match. He was also ruled out of the final two tour matches against Ireland and France and Wallabies supporters can only wonder what might have happened if he was available for those two fixtures.
Results
Wallabies v Japan (Wallabies won 19-15)
Wallabies v England (Wallabies lost 25-7)
Wallabies v Italy (Wallabies lost 26-19)
Wallabies v Ireland (Wallabies lost 46-19)
Wallabies v France (Wallabies lost 48-33)