Angus Bell had one last reminder to dispense. It was deep into extra time on a sweltering afternoon in Townsville, and in 29 seconds, the big prop would score a try to give the Wallabies a stirring victory over Argentina.
The plan was straightforward, literally. Take a second tap on the Pumas’ line, recycle and use brute force to get the chocolates.
But first things first.
“It was funny because when we were going to take the taps, I made sure I told ‘Beeps’ [Brandon Paenga-Amosa], ‘Make sure you tap it’,” Bell said.
“They were actually my words: ’Remember to actually tap it, don’t drop the ball, and we’ll clean and go from there.”
Bell’s instructions may sound obvious but context – and a history of heartbreak – bear considering. In recent times, the Wallabies have managed to find a range of cruel and unusual ways to lose Test matches in the dying moments.
And this was another moment of high-stakes pressure.
A few minutes earlier, captain Harry Wilson had bravely turned down a draw and pointed to corner to chase a win, and there was no room for error. Not one. With everything on the line, one small mistake would now end the game.
“That’s in your head the whole time, yeah,” Bell admits. “But it is almost muscle memory at that stage. We know what we have to do, to get all the little moments right, as you’ve tried to do throughout the game. And that detail is something we try and nail at training every day.
Angus Bell and the Wallabies celebrate the match-winning try against Argentina in Townsville.Credit: Getty Images
“You try not to think too much, otherwise it will cloud what you need to do. We know that we’ve done the training.
“So you get the call from the game driver, and then you try and go and complete. And by completing, I mean score.”
The Wallabies completed, and the rest is history. The ball was tapped safely and a few phases later, Bell speared between two Pumas defenders for his second Test try, and a famous win.
Bell was instantly swamped by teammates, and the public hasn’t let up with the congratulations this week after the Wallabies moved to Sydney for a second clash with the Pumas. Every second interaction has had a mention of the try.
“It’s definitely been really cool. But as I said before, there’s a lot of moments in a rugby game that decide it. I was just lucky enough to be on the end of it,” Bell said.
“It was an awesome feeling. As a rugby player, that’s what you chase. It’s the adrenaline, the thrill, winning at the death, especially for your country. It’s super special. I’m just happy that Harry backed us and we went to the corner. It was an awesome game.”
Though slightly embarrassed by getting the distilled praise for a team win, Bell is still soaking up the good vibes around the Wallabies and Australian rugby; both subjects of his devotion since he was young.
And there is some quiet personal satisfaction, too, after Bell had endured a torrid few years of injury and adversity that left him seriously wondering if his future in professional rugby was over at the age of 22. Or if the young prop, who’d been touted as one of the brightest prospects in Australian rugby for decades, may even have to make a switch to rugby league.
After a star junior career, Bell debuted for the Waratahs at 19 in 2020, and then Australia later that year.
Angus Bell playing for the Wallabies in 2020.Credit: Getty Images
The sky was the limit but the start of a long struggle with injury began in 2022, when he injured the ligament in the big toe of his right foot. It felt frustratingly minor, but as a footballer paid to push for a living, the toe injury would prove infuriatingly major.
Bell returned later in 2022 but re-injured his foot again, and after surgery, returned for the Waratahs at the start of 2023. When he injured the toe again in round one, Bell was distraught. He sat out the Super Rugby season.
Bell made it back for the 2023 Rugby World Cup but disaster struck again early in the 2024 Super Rugby season, when he re-injured the same toe in another clash with the Brumbies. With a third straight season ruined – and no end in sight to this torment – Bell was visibly shattered on the field.
“A lot of thoughts go through your mind,” Bell said. “Those thoughts do creep in, whether you have to retire or change codes or move position or whatever.”
Amid suggestions Bell may have to switch from front row and move to the back row, the damaging ball-runner told NSW teammates he may even have to look at playing rugby league.
Waratahs prop Angus Bell after picking up a foot injury against the Brumbies in Canberra on Saturday evening.Credit: Stan Sport
“I definitely wouldn’t have given up on the dream of sports, but it would have been somewhere else,” Bell said.
“And what level would have been, that’s a different story. I played a bit of league when I was a young bloke, but I’m definitely too fat now. You can put that in the story. I’m definitely too fat for that, and too heavy. And if I was playing back row in rugby, I’d be playing for Sydney Uni. I wouldn’t be playing any higher.
“I am not too sure how that would have all looked, and I’m grateful that it didn’t go that way, thank goodness.
“I was going to give it one more go, and it turns out that one more go was great, touch wood.”
Bell’s salvation came in the form of Brisbane orthopedic surgeon Ben Forster, who performed radical surgery to re-shape his foot and remove some structural flaws.
“They broke my first metatarsal in my foot to lower my arch, and so there’s less pressure on my big toe, which is what was giving me the problems.
Angus Bell has made a huge impact for the Wallabies from the bench in 2025.Credit: Janie Barrett
“And they took a millimetre out of the bone so I could have some more range in my plantar fascia, which is going to release the toe. Now it’s feeling a lot better, and through a lot of rehab and a lot of people helping me through that process, it’s come good, which has been great.”
Bell found support in a small group of front-row friends and rivals, who have also experienced toe injuries. Texts and conversations have bounced across the Tasman with All Blacks Fletcher Newell, Joe Moody and George Bell.
“We had a little toe community there, which was good,” Bell said. “We play rugby but we’re all humans. It was good to chat to those guys and I had really good chats with Joe Moody. He also had toe issues as well and he had that sorted out. He helped me when I needed some help. I did lean on Joe quite a lot.”
Bell returned for the Wallabies under new coach Joe Schmidt in August and started at loosehead prop in eight Tests – none better than a barnstorming showing in Australia’s win over England at Twickenham on the spring tour.
But after wearing the No.1 jersey with distinction for both Australia and NSW for several years, Schmidt had different plans in 2025. He put Bell on the bench against Fiji and has continued to deploy the 24-year-old as a finishing weapon through the Lions series, and the Rugby Championship.
It has proved an inspired selection call.
Bell has become a one-man bomb squad for the Wallabies, making game-turning impact when deployed in second halves.
Compared to games he started last year, stats show Bell’s output off the bench is considerably greater across most markers, despite having played 22 fewer minutes on average. Bell’s bench impact, in combination with the likes of Jeremy Williams and Tate McDermott, has helped the Wallabies power home late in games.
But having been driven to be the No.1 all his life – figuratively and jersey-wise – Bell admits it took some adjustment to get used to being a No.17.
“There are certain things in sport where you definitely have to leave your ego at the door,” Bell said.
“Of course, as a rugby player, you always want to start. That’s the dream and that’s the goal.
“But my thought on it now is that if you are picked in the team in the 23 for Australia, that’s a massive honour and a massive privilege. I play a half of footy anyway. It’s been different, definitely. But I understand what I need to do for the team.
“I’ve expressed to Joe and [scrum coach] Mike Cron about where my ambitions are, personally, and that’s to be the best loosehead in the world.
“If I can do that this year, coming off the bench and doing a job for Australia and making sure that Australia are the best team in the world, then I’ll do that. I’m happy to do that. And as long as we’re winning, I’m definitely happy.”
Modern coaches have stressed to media and fans – and no doubt players, too – that the hierarchy of starters and “finishers” is a dated concept, and bench players are equally as important in the pursuit of victory.
But it wasn’t until South Africa’s use of the famed “Bomb Squad” from their bench helped them win World Cups that perceptions genuinely shifted.
Angus Bell on the charge at Twickenham.Credit: AP
You ask Bell if South Africa have changed things to the point that the world’s best player in a position can now be found on a bench.
“South Africa have definitely changed the whole perspective and role of the bench,” he says. “You can see Malcolm Marx came off the bench for two years and was widely regarded as one of the best hookers in the world.
“Steven Kitshoff, before he retired, was off the bench. Ox Nche was off the bench quite a lot.
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“Nowadays, when guys are a lot bigger, a lot stronger, and then you’ve got the whole front-row sub off the bench, it’s definitely a weapon. And I guess what we’ve done over the past couple of weeks in adding value when we come on, that’s super important.
“I don’t think it really matters what number you wear.
“If you can be the best in the world, you can do it from any position on the field or in a team.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re wearing No.23 or No.1.”
Watch all the action from the 2025 Rugby Championship on Stan Sport.
