‘Numb arm’: Wallabies’ nervous wait on $5m man

Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt is hopeful an arm injury to $5m recruit Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii is “not too bad” as the Australians count the cost of a loss to Scotland that ends dreams of a grand slam for “hurt” players.

Suaalii was left wounded after handing out a big hit on Scottish captain Sione Tuipulotu, the Melbourne born-and-bred former junior Wallaby who was inspirational in his team’s 27-13 win that halted the Australian winning streak in the UK.

Amid serious concerns about Suaalii’s wrist, after he walked from the field in Edinburgh, Schmidt tried to downplay fears of a more serious injury but further tests would determine the severity and his capacity to play in the fourth and final match of the tour against Ireland.

“He’s got a pretty numb arm, but we’re hopeful it’s not too bad,” Schmidt said.

“But losing Joseph early didn’t help.”

Suaalii didn’t have his arm in a sling after the game, a positive sign for the 21-year-old who has been a revelation for Schmidt and the Wallabies through three Tests in the UK.

Wins over first England then Wales raised hopes of a four-game sweep for the first time since 1984, but Scotland proved too good, although Schmidt was anything but disappointed.

“Scotland are a good side and, hopefully, people can still see there’s some quality starting to be built through an Australian side that’s actually starting to show a bit of depth, albeit with some pretty inexperienced players,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt said the big lesson for him was around the importance of taking your chances, lamenting the skill execution of the Wallabies, having made six changes to the team that took down Wales.

“No, I think you try to learn from anything and every moment of the game and, for us, there’s plenty to learn,” he said.

“We made some good line breaks and got nothing off the back of them, kicked one away, knocked one on, and you’ve got to be better than that in a tight game.

“I think our skill execution was a bit off today. Defensively we worked really hard in the first half and I thought we defended really well, but in the second half there’s a fair bit to tidy up.”

Wallabies captain Harry Wilson said the missed opportunity would sting the players.

“It is disappointing. I know everyone really wanted to be part of history, so it does hurt,” he said.

The Wallabies faced a challenging lead-up with frozen fields denying them outdoor training and then in the 24 hours before the game, they lost both key hooker Matt Faessler through injury and lock Jeremy Williams.

“We were already a little bit glued together,” conceded Schmidt.

“But it’s a really good exercise for us to be put in that situation against a good team and I felt they stayed really competitive – albeit you can’t miss 30-plus tackles in an international against a really good team and expect to get the result.”