Australia U18s
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HAMILTON, New Zealand — Australia's Under-18 rugby side held off a determined comeback from New Zealand Schools on Sunday, winning 40-33 in an age-grade classic at St Paul's Collegiate School to extend the Australians' winning run over their trans-Tasman rivals to four consecutive matches.

Captain Justice Taumoepeau led from the front in a new role at openside flanker, bringing significant physicality in both attack and defense throughout the contest. The New South Wales Waratahs product produced a crucial moment late in the match, delivering a try-saving tackle with just five minutes remaining to deny New Zealand the chance to level the score as the home side pushed hard for an equalizer.

Australia sealed the result shortly afterward when replacement scrum-half Izak Holmes crossed for a try following a short-side play that saw winger Tahj Smith break free and create the opening. The score put the match out of reach for New Zealand Schools in the closing stages after a contest that had swung back and forth for much of the afternoon.

Australia's rolling maul proved a persistent weapon throughout the tour, and hooker Oliver Smith continued his strong form by adding two more tries to his tally on Sunday, building on a hat-trick he scored against the New Zealand Barbarians U18s earlier in the week. Head coach Dale Roberson's side, which opened the scoring through winger Taj Scarr, did not have an easy path to victory, trailing 19-12 at halftime after New Zealand Schools came out the stronger side in the opening 40 minutes.

Australia's bench made a decisive impact in turning the match around, with prop Hasani Bloomfield scoring a vital try to give the Australians the lead moments after lock Harrison Asi had crossed to tie the scores. The replacements' contributions proved pivotal in a match that ultimately saw Australia outscore New Zealand Schools in a high-tempo second half before closing out the win in the final minutes.

The victory capped an unbeaten three-game season for the Australia U18 squad, which also included wins over the New Zealand Barbarians U18s and Fiji Schools during the tour. Sunday's result marked Australia's fourth consecutive win over New Zealand Schools, following victories of 81-48 and 55-33 in 2025 alone, continuing a run of dominance in the fixture that has become one of the highlights of the annual trans-Tasman age-grade rugby calendar.

The match formed part of a broader tour that saw the touring Australian party based at St Peter's School in Cambridge, New Zealand, while playing its Test matches at St Paul's Collegiate School in Hamilton. The squad, selected by Roberson from 26 players representing 15 schools across five Australian states, included several players returning from the undefeated 2025 touring side, including forwards Bloomfield, Tahj Smith and Oliver Smith, all of whom played prominent roles in Sunday's win.

Ahead of the tour, Roberson said the coaching staff and playing squad were looking forward to the challenge of taking on the Australian Schoolboys, the New Zealand Barbarians and New Zealand Schools across what was shaping up as a demanding stretch of matches. That challenge played out across the tour's three fixtures, with Australia defeating the Barbarians earlier in the week before completing the sweep against New Zealand Schools on Sunday.

Sunday's result continues a run of success for Australian age-grade rugby against New Zealand opposition that dates back several years, with Australia having first broken through against New Zealand Schools in 2019 behind a side that included current Wallabies Josh Flook, Zane Nonggorr, Tom Hooper, Billy Pollard and Joseph Suaalii, who has since gone on to a high-profile professional career. The current crop of Australian age-grade players will now look to build on Sunday's result as several of them progress through state and national pathways toward senior representative rugby.

The final score — Australia 40 (tries to Scarr, Smith twice, Asi, Bloomfield and Holmes, with five conversions from Ruthven) against New Zealand Schools' 33 (tries to Brock, Fleming twice, Stanley and Nordstrom, with four conversions from Cooper) — reflected a contest that remained competitive deep into the second half before Australia's bench strength and composure in the closing stages proved decisive.

With the tour now complete, the Australian touring party will return home having gone unbeaten across all three matches in New Zealand, a result that will be viewed as a strong marker for the depth of Australian age-grade rugby ahead of future representative honors for many of the players involved. For New Zealand Schools, Sunday's narrow defeat extends a difficult recent run against their Australian counterparts, despite having pushed the tourists close for long stretches of an entertaining contest at St Paul's Collegiate School.