‘It rips your lungs apart’: Inside the Wallabies’ Ellis Park mission impossible

If the Wallabies are trying to forget what awaits them at Ellis Park in the minutes before their first Test of the Rugby Championship, there is a helpful sign in the bright red tunnel reminding them, in bold lettering, that they are 1753 metres above sea level.

The Wallabies have played 11 Tests at the Johannesburg venue for just one win, back in 1963. The lack of oxygen is only one aspect that makes the Springbok fortress so impenetrable for visiting teams.

Former Wallabies playmaker and recent World Rugby Hall of Fame inductee Matt Burke played all over the world for his country, but cannot remember many stadiums that challenged his body and mind like Ellis Park.

“It rips your lungs apart,” Burke said. “Some people get it in the opening minutes, then some people get it at the end of the game when they’re struggling for breath as well.

“But you’ve also got to remember that half of these [South African] players don’t come from altitude as well. They don’t live at altitude, but they seem to grow that extra energy from their fans at the stadium. Is it a mindset? Yeah, absolutely it’s a mindset.”

Ellis Park is a cherished part of South African rugby history. It was the venue for the country’s first World Cup win, when former president Nelson Mandela wore the iconic Springbok jersey with the captain Francois Pienaar’s No.6 on the back.

In a world of generic modern stadiums in plush suburbs, Ellis Park stands proudly apart. While most of South Africa’s business community deserted the city for the wealthy northern suburbs, the arena – less than two kilometres from the crime-ridden inner-city Johannesburg suburb of Hillbrow – remains a beacon for some of the most passionate supporters in world rugby.

“The South African anthem will resonate, they are diehard supporters up on the Highveldt and that’s their number one game and their number one passion,” Burke said.

“They’re world champs so they are allowed to brag, they are allowed to flex, so the Wallabies have to give it back to them to make sure that they’re in the contest.

“You’ve got to play tough footy, fast footy. If you get a result over there, it’s like you’ve accomplished something incredibly difficult, and the reward of doing that is through the roof.”

Burke’s 2002 Wallabies team came the closest to emulating the victorious 1963 team, leading 31-26 before South African fullback Werner Greeff scored an injury-time try and conversion.

After Greeff’s try levelled the scores at 31-31, Burke noticed that his opposite number was taking far too long to kick his conversion and reminded New Zealand referee Paddy O’Brien.

“He [Greeff] took about four minutes, he took forever to kick his goal, and I’m yelling out to Paddy O’Brien, ‘Call the game off’ – it was still 31-31,” Burke said.

“He should have called the game off [Greeff kicked the conversion to win the game 33-31]. I ran up to him afterwards and said, ‘Mate, you should have called that game off’, and he went, ‘Burkey, I’ve got balls, but they’re not that big.’”

Four players in today’s squad remain from the Wallabies side which last played at Ellis Park in 2019: James Slipper, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Nic White and Taniela Tupou.

Hooker Brandon Paenga-Amosa, who last faced the Springboks seven years ago in Port Elizabeth, hasn’t had an opportunity to ask his teammates how it feels to run out against the Boks in Ellis Park.

Paenga-Amosa admires South Africa’s four World Cups and respects their record at Ellis Park, but doesn’t feel intimidated by it.

“Obviously we respect what they’ve done we respect them as a team and winning the World Cups but we’re just going to take them at face value and what we see in front of our faces in Ellis Park is how we’re going to see them, rather than putting them up on that pedestal,” Paenga Amosa said.

Paenga-Amosa played the British and Irish Lions four times, representing the Force, the AUNZ XV, the First Nations and Pasifika XV and the Wallabies in the victorious final Test in Sydney. The hooker is relishing the opportunity of being an underdog once again.

“We enjoy being that underdog as Aussies I feel like a lot of the time we are the underdog, and we love a comeback story so this is nothing new for us,” Paenga-Amosa said. “It takes the pressure off us ... we’re ready to fire off our shot and have a crack.”

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