On Sunday afternoon, sports fans were treated to a bizarre dual-screen anomaly: whether you checked the cricket score at the Wanderers or tuned into the rugby in Perth, the Aussies were out there playing with 11 men. The only difference? The 11 blokes wielding cricket bats took a hiding, while the 11 guys in rugby boots somehow pulled off one of the most audacious, chaotic escapes in Test history.
Having built a commanding 42-17 lead by the 64th minute with some sensational attacking rugby, the Wallabies proceeded to trigger one of the most unbelievable meltdowns ever seen on a rugby pitch. Over a frantic six-minute window, Italian referee Andrea Piardi dished out yellow cards like a blackjack dealer in Vegas.
To top off the circus, the referee comms gear completely failed, leaving Piardi standing on the Optus Stadium turf clutching a mobile phone to talk to the TMO, presumably checking if Pat Cummins had any spare fielders to send over.
Watch how the cards fell, one by one, until only a cricket XI was left standing:
Card 1 (69th minute): Skipper Harry Wilson binned (14 men)
The captain gets pinged for a high tackle, starting the yellow avalanche and putting the Wallabies on the back foot.
Card 2 (71st minute): Ryan Lonergan binned (13 men)
Just two minutes later, replacement scrumhalf Ryan Lonergan sees yellow for an illegal infringement at a defensive 5 metre scrum.
Card 3 (73rd minute): Joseph Aukuso Su'ali'i binned (12 men)
With the pressure mounting, Joseph Aukuso Su'ali'i is penalized for an offside play, reducing Australia to 12.
Card 4 (75th minute): Hunter Paisami binned (11 men)
The breaking point. Hunter Paisami connects high, officially dropping the Wallabies down to an unprecedented 11 men on the pitch.
Only once before in Tier 1 Test history (Fiji vs Italy in 2013) had an international team been reduced to 11 players, and Fiji lost that match. Facing a full 15-man Springbok squad with four men in the bin, Australia somehow scrambled on the edges, slowed the game to a crawl, traded tries for precious seconds on the clock, and clung on for a mind-boggling 42-38 victory.
It was ugly, completely chaotic, and utterly bizarre, but it gave rugby fans a finish they will be talking about for decades.