The Wallabies and Wallaroos are aiming to play in front of record crowds in Newcastle – and they may get their wish with thousands of tickets sold for both fixtures after going on sale at noon AEDT on Tuesday.
Wallaroo Layne Morgan, who grew up in the Steel City and played for club sides Merewether-Carlton and the Hunter Wildfires, spoke at McDonald Jones Stadium on Tuesday morning with Newcastle Lord Mayor Dr Ross Kerridge and State Member of Parliament Tim Crakanthorp.
The upcoming Fiji clash on July 6th will mark the first match of Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies in 2025 – and the first time the side has returned to the city in four years following playing out a 15-all draw with Los Pumas during a COVID-restricted Tri-Nations series in 2020.
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Before that match, the city had only hosted one previous clash – an infamous 9-6 loss to Scotland in torrential conditions in 2012.
While the Wallabies will look to break their duck in the city, for the Wallaroos, their clash with the Black Ferns marks the first time the side has returned to the Hunter since their famous 2019 clash with Japan – the 34-5 victory marking the first time the side won on home soil.
Morgan, who watched from the stands of Newcastle Sportsground 2 that day among nearly 4,000 other fans, admitted it was an important moment in her rugby career.
“It was an awesome experience to see that the Wallaroos had been in Newcastle,” Morgan said at the official launch at McDonald Jones Stadium.
“I was quite jealous and envious because I was with Sevens at the time, and it definitely was something that drew me towards the game.”
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In a growing sign of the increasing profile of the Wallaroos, Morgan called the move across town to Newcastle’s largest venue a significant ‘upgrade,’ – further bolstered by the region providing several current stars in the national team.
“To see that we’ve been upgraded up to McDonald Jones Stadium – into this type of facility – is just awesome to see what’s coming for the women’s game,” said Morgan.
“We’ve got Maya Stewart as well as Leilani Nathan – with a lot of Newcastle girls in Super Rugby programs, which is really exciting to see.
“Hopefully, they can build into the program pathways as well and the more Newcastle girls we get out there, the better for the Hunter region.”
Wallaroos player Layne Morgan signs autographs for local junior players at McDonald Jones Stadium. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images for Rugby Australia)
The Wallaroos clash on May 10th will mark the launch of their Pacific Four series campaign – and the second Test of the year following a trip to Fiji.
Despite being the incumbent scrum half, Morgan’s ticket to the Rugby World Cup later this year is far from guaranteed, with several options emerging for coach Jo Yapp in the form of the Western Force’s Samantha Wood and Queensland Red’s Natalie Wright – and that’s before the arrival of the Aussie Sevens contingent.
After being part of the Waratahs set-up for several years, Morgan announced she would follow fellow Wallaroo Eva Karpani up to the Reds for the 2025 season to challenge and improve her rugby skillset – and sure up her starting position.
“We’ve got these seven Test matches coming up on the way to the World Cup and it’s going to be so important to get these combos right,” Morgan added.
“[The] World Cup is always big with where you are sitting on the ladder globally. So it’s going to be a real test to us and help develop our team and put us on the right pathway towards the World Cup.
“There’s going to be those ups and downs and rollercoaster rides just to perfect it all for that World Cup moment. So I’m excited to get on the journey and play with the girls here.
“It is hard not to be in blue, I will admit that. Maroon is a tough colour.
“I’m excited to have the experience up in Queensland and be able to challenge my rugby skills with the team up there. Especially kind of stepping up as a player, I think that was something that I wanted to do in my own career.
“Unfortunately it means trading states for a little bit but hopefully come back in some blue colour in some way.”
Newcastle was confirmed last week as one of the seven venues that will be part of the 2027 Rugby World Cup, with four matches scheduled to be played at McDonald Jones Stadium.
The Wallabies will be looking for a record crowd at the venue, with the Scotland Test in 2012 seeing 20,088 fans attend – and currently, the July Test looks set to beat that record, with more than half the venue reportedly sold out.
While the Wallaroos are unlikely to break their all-time attendance record of 28,842 – set during a Bledisloe doubleheader in 2018 and was a world record crowd for a women’s international at the time – breaking their largest standalone Test match record of 7,055, set in 2023 at Redcliffe Stadium against the Black Ferns, is achievable.