The second round of World Cup Group matches got underway with the holders Australia taking on a Scotland side who had a comprehensive and surprising loss to Italy in their opening encounter. The record books were on standby as the Kangaroos were expected to run in a cricket score, having been handicapped by sixty points on the coupon.

It´s only the second time that the two sides have met, Australia taking the spoils with a 54-12 win in the 2016 Four Nations Competition. No-one gave the Bravehearts a chance of springing a surprise in the full knowledge that a defeat would almost certainly end their competition.

Mal Meninga made wholesale changes to his winning side to rotate his squad while Scotland also had a number of changes, the most prominent being the omission of Ryan Brierley after he suffered an elbow strain, his replacement being Alex Walker.

The rain greeted the two sides to the field.

The opening minutes were dominated by Australia, but the Scottish defence held them out until the fifth minute when a flying Josh Addo-Carr took a floated miss-out pass from Nathan Cleary to dive in at the corner. Nathan Cleary missed the conversion from the touchline.

On ten minutes Jack Wighton crashed through weak tackling in the Scotland line to score a try which was way too easy. This time Cleary was on target for a 10-0 lead.

A kick to the corner from Cleary on fifteen wasn´t fielded by the Scottish defence and was dribbled into goal by Cam Munster where it was grounded by Angus Crichton for the third Australian try of the game.

The Kangaroos were giving the ball plenty of air and the fourth try came from Campbell Graham as he took a looping pass and stepped inside before carrying two tacklers with him to score. Cleary drilled his kick between the posts for 22-0 with twenty-two minutes on the clock. It was already looking ominous for Scotland.

On twenty-eight Cleary got his first try of the night with a scoot from dummy half, using the referee as a foil, to go in from fifteen metres. He added the conversion himself and it was a point a minute for the Green & Golds.

On thirty-one Scotland spilled the ball on attack and it found it´s way into the hands of Addo-Carr who initially stumbled but regained his feet to sprint fifty metres down the left wing, leaving the Scottish chasers in his wake. Cleary was on target again for 34-0.

Five minutes from the break and Australia brought up the forty. A great dip of the shoulder and break from Liam Martin allowed him to provide the pass to Wighton for him to cross for his second of the half. Cleary added the conversion for 40-0.

Australia had been nothing short of sensational in the first half, Scotland hadn´t recorded a single play-the-ball in their opposition’s twenty.

Just very fifty seconds after the restart James Tedesco used his strength to push through the Scottish defence after dropping the shoulder twice before dropping over the line. Cleary added the conversion.

On forty-three the Aussies brought up the fifty with Ben Hunt running unopposed from ten metres out as he took the pass and went through a massive gap. Cleary kicked the extras for 52-0. Now it was time to dust off the record books.

Addo-Carr got his hat-trick on forty-eight, another long-range effort from The Fox as he ran the angle to go over from forty metres off a Munster pass. Cleary om target for a ninth time for 58-0.

A good defensive period from Scotland kept Australia out until the fifty-eight minute when Campbell Graham got his second of the night off a Munster pass. Cleary was off target for the second time of the evening. Linnett was sin-binned in the aftermath.

They were queuing up down the left and it was Matt Burton who too the pass with a two man overlap to run ten to the line and dive in. Cleary added the conversion, his tenth of the night, for 68-0 equalling Scotland largest ever margin of defeat.

On seventy-three Graham got his hat-trick when he took a short Harry Grant grubber to collect and score in the right corner. Cleary added the touchline conversion for 74-0.

Isiah Yeo played his part in bringing up the eighty after Hunt caught a Munster cross field kick and passed under the tackle for the debutant loose forward to go in under the sticks. Cleary kicked his twelfth goal of the game and Australia had an 80-0 lead.

A minute before the end some incredible acrobatics from Burton, flicking a wayward pass back into play while airborne over the side line to be taken by Addo-Carr who dribbled the ball down the touchline and dove onto the ball in goal to ground for a sensational final try of the game. Cleary was unable to add the extras for a final score of 84-0.

This eclipsed Scotland’s previous largest loss which was by 74-6 against New Zealand in Christchurch in 2017, but fell short of Australia´s biggest ever win was 110-4 against Russia in November 2000. Australia were expected to win the game comfortably, but the nature of the performance and the win sounds a wake-up call to the rest of the competition that they are not going to relinquish their trophy lightly. Meninga now has a selection nightmare ahead of the game against Italy and then in the later stages of the competition. Scotland´s race is run.

Australia: Tedesco (T), Graham (3T), Wighton (2T), Burton (T), Addo-Carr (4T), Munster, Cleary (T, 12G), Campbell-Gillart, Grant, Carrigan, Crichton (T), Martin, Yeo (T). Subs: Hunt (T), Collins, Holmes, Trbojevic.

Scotland: Walker, Walmsley, Hellewell, Buchanan, Russell, Hayward, Gahan, Bayliss-Brow, Hood, Teanby, Aitken, Linnett (SB on 59), Bell. Subs: Schneider, Bain, Ferguson, Graham.

Half-Time: 40-0.

Full-Time: 84-0.

Score Progression: 4-0, 8-0, 10-0, 14-0, 16-0, 20-0, 22-0, 26-0, 28-0, 32-0, 34-0, 38-0, 40-0: HT : 44-0, 46-0, 50-0, 52-0, 56-0, 58-0, 62-0, (SB), 66-0, 68-0, 72-0, 74-0, 78-0, 80-0, 84-0 : FT .

Lead Exchanges: Australia.

Referee: Grant Atkins.

Attendance: 10,276 at Ricoh Arena, Coventry.