Ireland (6) 20
Tries: Bowe, O’Driscoll **Cons: ** O’Gara 2 Pens: O’Gara 2
**Australia (10) 20 **
**Tries: ** Mitchell, Elsom Cons: Giteau 2 Pens: Giteau 2
**A late Brian O’Driscoll try helped Ireland salvage a 20-20 draw in their match against Australia at Croke Park.**Australia led 10-6 at half-time, Drew Mitchell scoring a try, but Tommy Bowe touched down for Ireland in the second half and then Rocky Elsom scored a try.
Matt Giteau kicked 10 points to help the Wallabies to their 20-13 lead but O’Driscoll ran in under the posts in the final minute and O’Gara converted.
O’Gara ended the match with a tally of two penalties and two conversions.
Mitchell raced over the line for the opening try in the second minute after O’Gara’s pass failed to find Brian O’Driscoll, who could only palm the ball into the path of the Australian winger. Giteau converted.
O’Gara replied with a straightforward fifth-minute penalty after the Wallabies were penalised for offside after a knock-on.
The visitors had the better of the opening 15 minutes but Giteau missed with his first penalty attempt of the game after the Irish were penalised for straying offside.
Australia were then pulled up for an offence at the lineout and O’Gara converted a penalty from in front of the posts to reduce Ireland’s deficit to a point.
A Giteau penalty two minutes later restored Australia’s four-point advantage and then the fly-half made a break but was tackled just short of the line by Rob Kearney.
On 29 minutes, Wycliff Palu was sin-binned by referee Jonathan Kaplan after the number eight was adjudged to have halted Kearney in a dangerous manner without using his arms, but Ireland failed to take advantage of their numerical advantage.
Giteau was off-target with an early penalty effort four minutes after the break and then Keith Earls was introduced as a replacement for the injured Luke Fitzgerald.
Giteau successfully landed a penalty after 54 minutes but Ireland responded in emphatic fashion, Bowe crossing the line under the posts after a fine Irish move which started with a charge by prop Cian Healy. O’Gara added the simple conversion to level the scores.
Australia took command again after a fine flowing move when skipper Elsom shrugged off a couple of Irish challenges and barged over the line, grounding the ball in the corner before being pushed into touch.
Giteau’s conversion from a tight angle made it 20-13 to the tourists.
Bowe crossed the line again with three minutes remaining but replays failed to conclusively show that he had managed to ground the ball.
O’Driscoll salvaged a draw for his side when he completed a fine move after an Irish scrum by running in under the posts to score a minute from time, O’Gara adding the conversion.
**Ireland: **Kearney (Leinster); Bowe (Ospreys), B O’Driscoll (Leinster, capt), P Wallace (Ulster), Fitzgerald (Leinster); O’Gara (Munster), O’Leary (Munster); Healy (Leinster), Flannery (Munster), Hayes (Munster); O’Callaghan (Munster), O’Connell (Munster); Ferris (Ulster), D Wallace (Munster), Heaslip (Leinster).
**Replacements: **Cronin (Connacht), Court (Ulster), Cullen (Leinster), Leamy (Munster), Reddan (Leinster), Sexton (Leinster), Earls (Munster).
Australia: Ashley-Cooper; Hynes, Ioane, Cooper, Mitchell; Giteau, Genia; Robinson, Moore, Alexander, Horwill, Chisholm, Elsom (capt), Pocock, Palu.
Replacements: Polota Nau, Dunning, Mumm, Smith, Burgess, Cross, O’Connor.