Jenkins proud despite defeat

Wales’ stand-in captain Gethin Jenkins was disappointed but proud after his team went down to a 21-18 defeat against Australia in the bronze-medal game at the Rugby World Cup.

Australia won a scrappy contest at Eden Park, with a late try from Leigh Halfpenny not enough to close the gap for Wales.

“I’m proud of the way we finished, we’ve just come up short again today, but we’ve enjoyed the tournament,” Jenkins said on ITV.

“It’s a shame we couldn’t finish it off with the win.”

Wales were guilty of several turnovers in the match, and Jenkins admitted it cost them.

“We know how good Australia are, and they competed well. We tried to play a little too much rugby and it cost us with turnovers and the tries they scored. But we kept working to the end.

“To get to the semis is a great achievement for this group of players.

“We talked about creating history and to come fourth, while it’s not as good as third, is still an improvement on the last couple of World Cups.”