Article #81732

• Australia 57-10 Italy

• Hosts kickstart Nations Championship campaign with first win

The Wallabies have ended the Joe Schmidt era in style, blitzing Italy 57-10 in Perth to end their six-game losing streak in emphatic fashion and give longsuffering fans a glimpse of the riches new coach Les Kiss inherits in the bid for the 2027 World Cup.

Despite Italy coach Gonzalo Quesada being suspended by World Rugby for labelling French referee Luc Ramos as “super poor” in the Azzurri’s 47-17 loss to the All Blacks last week, the world No 10 side were expected to trouble the Wallabies, as they had in their shock victories in 2022 and 2025. Instead they walked into an ambush.