On the final day of pool matches, the Steelers were eager to claim their first win of the tournament, hoping to build on the new line-ups and bring more consistency to their offense.

The new-look Steelers took on both European teams, France and Great Britain, in the final matches before tomorrow’s finals.

Game 5 – Australia vs France

The Steelers were a different team in their second encounter against the French, showcasing their best half of the tournament as they found the intensity that had been lacking on the prior two days of competition. The composure of Chris Bond in both offense and defense, coupled with the experience of mid-point stalwart, Shae Graham saw the pair combining for a number of crucial plays in the first half. Injections of pace off the bench by Andrew Holloway saw the Steelers unlucky to be behind 3 at the half-time break.

Despite a strong start, the third quarter saw a dip in consistency with a number of turnovers and unsuccessful hail mary’s ultimately saw Australia ruing what could have been as the final hooter sounded, going down by 11 points.

Result: France 58 defeated Australia 47

Game 6 – Australia vs Great Britain

From the first tip off, the Steelers were on, evidenced by a new-found determination which had been missing in the opening matches. Brayden Foxley-Conolly put his name forward for more exposure at the top level, with arguably his best performance in green and gold to date. BFC combined well with the ever-steady combination of low-pointers Mick Ozanne and Ben Fawcett, seeing the Steelers to the break with a three-point lead, their first of the tournament.

There were nerves a-plenty in the second, given the form of both sides heading in and the reluctance of GB to provide the Aussies their first win. Despite what was on the line, the coaching team held their nerve and committed to a rotation of line-ups which pleasingly stood tall when it mattered most to stave off a GB comeback. The most notable change from their earlier performances came in the form of an inspired defensive purpose, forcing GB to withstand mountains of pressure which ultimately proved too much. Chris Bond’s work on the defensive side of the ball simply outstanding, and a lesson to many newcomers of the lofty standard expected of a Steelers wheelchair rugby player. Australia the eventual winners by 4 points.

Result: Australia 61 defeated Great Britain 57

FROM THE TEAM

Australian Steeler and Australia’s first female player spoke today about how the new-look Steelers were coming together as a team: “It’s a whole new team structure. It’s been fun and different to play in different combinations…we’re bringing in new defenses, offenses and gelling with those, slowly getting better with each one and more confident. That’s been the biggest learning; just learning to play together.“

On the teams’ goals throughout this tournament: “We’ve improved each game and each game we have been given tasks to work on and each game we are kicking those little goals.“

The Steelers play their final game in Chiba tomorrow, taking on Great Britain in the Bronze Medal match at 1:00pm AEDT. Catch all the action live tomorrow here: https://www.youtube.com/@jsadchannel/streams

For all results and competition updates, please visit the Steelers Hub here: https://wheelchairrugby.com.au/steelers-hub

2025 Japan Para Champs – Day 4 – Sunday, 9 February 2025

1:00pm (AEDT) - Bronze Medal vs Great Britain

5:15pm (AEDT) - Closing Ceremony

Media Enquiries

Please send through any media enquiries for the Japan Para Championships to:

Kelsey Singh
kelsey@wheelchairrugby.com.au
+61 423 916 576

2025 Japan Para Championship - Day 3 Review