There was no disguising the pain after the Wallabies had their once-in-a-lifetime grand slam dream shattered in the cruellest fashion in Dublin yesterday.
The Wallabies were devastated after Ireland's record-setting captain Brian O'Driscoll steamed over for a last-minute try to snatch a dramatic 20-all draw for the Six Nations champions at Croke Park.
A stunned five-eighth Matt Giteau said, ''We felt we had it there, certainly to keep the grand slam alive, but obviously the grand slam is dead. You don't really know what to feel.''
Australia has been left exasperated, frustrated, humiliated, demoralised and plain filthy by some of its more recent losses, but this was truly its most deflating defeat since the 2007 World Cup quarter-final shocker against England in Marseilles.
Never has Robbie Deans been more dejected during his 26-Test coaching reign after watching his brave Wallabies fall agonisingly short of halting rampant Ireland's eight-Test, 12-month winning streak.
''It was a gutsy effort in terms of dominating the game but, once again, we didn't get the reward and we're certainly not getting the rub of the green, that's for sure,'' Deans said after the Wallabies once again suffered at the hands of the referee.
In a harsh decision that had Australian fans chanting ''bullshit, bullshit'', South African official Jonathan Kaplan sin-binned Wallabies No8 Wycliff Palu in the first half for a supposed no-arms tackle on Ireland fullback Robert Kearney.
Deans felt it was a ''magnificent'' hit from Palu, while Kaplan also awarded Ireland a series of other baffling penalties but, most critically, denied Australia one which it felt it deserved for destabilising Ireland's scrum in the lead-up to O'Driscoll's try.
Australia was never headed and seemed set for victory when inspired captain Rocky Elsom charged over in the 62nd minute to give the Wallabies a 20-13 advantage.
Elsom's try which followed winger Drew Mitchell's in the second minute after he punished O'Driscoll's knock-on with his first touch of the ball in his 100th Test was just reward after the Wallabies repeatedly punched holes in the Irish defence.
Giteau, Palu, Elsom, fullback Adam Ashley-Cooper and official man-of-the-match David Pocock, who vindicated his selection at openside flanker ahead of 107-Test stalwart George Smith with a barnstorming display, all broke clear as Ireland battled to hang on.
Even Ireland coach Declan Kidney conceded the hosts were fortunate.
Australia's once-maligned scrum was also dominant but, for all its toil, the Wallabies were unable to ever kick clear and spent most of the final quarter under siege defending their line.
Winger Tommy Bowe, who scored Ireland's first try in the 56th minute to lock the game up at 13-13, after Australia led 10-6 at half-time, was held up over the line by four Australians in the play immediately before O'Driscoll's last-gasp effort.
Given his knack for scoring on the biggest occasions, it was almost inevitable O'Driscoll would eventually strike. And he did so off a brilliantly worked move, with decoys confusing the Wallabies' inexperienced midfield to such an extent he crossed over untouched.
The draw crushed the Wallabies and has taken the fizz out of the rest of the tour with Deans's young side now having no prospect of emulating Australia's legendary 1984 grand slammers who completed a sweep of wins over England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Instead the Wallabies will head to Edinburgh tonight with the humble aim of finishing the European section of their tour unbeaten with victories over Scotland and then Wales in Cardiff on Sunday week. AAP
lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lllAT A GLANCEIRELAND 20 (Tommy Bowe, Brian O'Driscoll tries Ronan O'Gara 2 cons 2 pens) drew AUSTRALIA 20 (Rocky Elsom, Drew Mitchell tries Matt Giteau 2 cons 2 pens) at Croke Park. Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (RSA).
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