The Australians had to be comforted on Sunday 29 September and, fortunately, there was a lot of beer in Tokyo's stadium, where they lost to the Welsh in Group D of the Rugby World Cup in Japan. Despite two attempts in the second half by Dane Haylett-Petty and Michael Hooper, they were unable to catch up with the lead taken by their opponents in the tough defence.
For the first forty minutes, the 15th of the leek was distinguished by two attempts by Hadleigh Parkes and Gareth Davies, but also by drops, including one by Dan Biggar after the 35th second of play. At the end of this intense and suspenseful match, played with a humidity level above 70%, the Welsh won (29-25)
Wallabies coach Michael Cheika did not appear panicked, simply noting that his team had "given up too much in the first half". He and Captain Michael Hooper seemed a little dissatisfied with the refereeing of Frenchman Romain Poite. Which would have had a little too much recourse to video arbitration, which "didn't help us", according to number 7 of the Wallabies, who will play against Uruguay on October 5?
As for the Welsh winners, who have a good chance of avoiding New Zealand and England in the finals, coach Warren Gatland said his team "had grown in-game management", as this match "was one of the toughest players in a long time". And the coach insisted on the importance of recovery in the run-up to the October 9 game against Fiji, probably revengeful after their defeat to Uruguay.
Also see Rugby World Cup 2019: Group D as delicate
A beer-drunk match in the stands
The match between Australians and Welsh was of interest to France, who should find the group's top player in the quarter-finals. And, for the record, thanks to their success, the Welsh have ended a series of five consecutive World Cup defeats against Australia, while paying tribute to their captain, Alun Wyn Jones, who was honouring his 130th selection, a record.
For his 130th cape, a record in Wales, Captain Alun Wyn Jones led the 15th of the leek to victory.
For his 130th cape, a record in Wales, Captain Alun Wyn Jones led the 15th of the leek to victory. WILLIAM WEST / AFP
Excellent reasons for Welsh supporters to celebrate and honour an innovation of this World Cup. For the first time in the history of the competition, hostesses are selling beer in the stadium bays, as is done in baseball matches in Japan.
All in uniform stamped in the colours of the World Cup World Partner, they carry a backpack that can hold 40 cans and weighs 17 kg. "It's not too heavy, because the bag was specially designed for this purpose. The problem is the opening of the cans. It hurts your fingers in the long run," explains one of the 307 saleswomen employed for the Australia-Wales game, for which 62,000 cans were planned.
The ballet of these hostesses and their supplies are provided by a small Australian company, Global Hospitality Group (GHG), specialized in the sale of drinks and food at major events.
Australia, also present for the burial
In Japan, the beverage of the world's second-largest brewer is produced by the local brewer Kirin, which has planned to prepare 1.5 million litres for the entire competition, to be sold in cans, bottles and under pressure. Delivery to the stadium is made by the venerable Kokubu family home - created in 1712 in the Nihonbashi shopping district of Edo (formerly Tokyo).
The last step is therefore carried out by GHG. The company was contacted urgently in February after the organizing committee realized that it was going to disaster, due to the lack of an adequate organization for the sale of beer. GHG had to find premises, create a structure before June and learn to work in the complex world of Japanese distribution. "We are used to working in a hurry. For the Rio Olympics, we were contacted in November of the previous year. We are very flexible, which makes things easier," explains Director Peter Wright.