The All Blacks scored eight tries in their 54-34 thrashing of the Wallabies in Sydney on Saturday. JON CARDINELLI reports.
The All Blacks battled to impose themselves in the last two Tests against the British & Irish Lions. On this occasion, in arguably their toughest away Rugby Championship fixture against the Wallabies, they were dominant at the collisions and nothing short of ruthless when they caught so much as a sniff of the opposition tryline.
The visitors scored four tries in the first 25 minutes. They did well to attack the exposed left flank during the opening quarter. Their defence did well to force turnovers and then translate those opportunities into tries and points at the other end of the field.
The Wallabies’ defence was absolutely shambolic in the first stanza. They did well to rush the All Blacks initially. The communication in the wider channels, however, was sorely lacking.
Coach Michael Cheika gambled when he picked a new midfield combination in Kurtley Beale and Samu Kerevi. The selection of rookie Curtis Rona was also questioned before the game.
These players struggled on defence, but then so too did the more seasoned players in the side. The aggression and organisation of the defence was not up to standard. The All Blacks took full advantage to score six tries and 40 points in the first half alone.
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Damian McKenzie crossed the line early in the second stanza. Ben Smith got his name on the scoresheet to boost the All Blacks beyond the 50-mark.
From there, New Zealand took their collective foot off the pedal and allowed the hosts to add some respectability to the scoreline.
The Wallabies scored their first try of the match when Rona broke the defence in the 52nd minute. They added three more in succession, and by the 69th minute they trailed the All Blacks by 20 points.
The All Blacks should be disappointed with their defensive effort in the period that followed Smith’s try. They certainly did not play with the same intensity and accuracy that caused the Wallabies such problems in the first half.
That said, the All Blacks will go into the second Bledisloe Cup fixture in Dunedin next Saturday with confidence and momentum.
Wallabies – Tries: Curtis Rona, Tevita Kuridrani, Kurtley Beale, Israel Folau. Conversions: Bernard Foley (3). Penalties: Foley (2).
All Blacks – Tries: Liam Squire, Rieko Ioane (2), Ryan Crotty (2), Sonny Bill Williams, Damian McKenzie, Ben Smith. Conversions: Beauden Barrett (7).
Wallabies – 15 Israel Folau, 14 Henry Speight, 13 Samu Kerevi, 12 Kurtley Beale, 11 Curtis Rona, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Will Genia, 8 Sean McMahon, 7 Michael Hooper (c), 6 Ned Hanigan, 5 Adam Coleman, 4 Rory Arnold, 3 Allan Alaalatoa, 2 Stephen Moore, 1 Scott Sio.
Subs: 16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 Tom Robertson, 18 Sekope Kepu, 19 Rob Simmons, 20 Lopeti Timani, 21 Nick Phipps, 22 Reece Hodge, 23 Tevita Kuridrani.
All Blacks – 15 Damian McKenzie, 14 Ben Smith, 13 Ryan Crotty, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Rieko Ioane, 10 Beauden Barrett, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read (c), 7 Sam Cane, 6 Liam Squire, 5 Samuel Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Codie Taylor, 1 Joe Moody.
Subs: 16 Nathan Harris, 17 Wyatt Crockett, 18 Ofa Tu’ungafasi, 19 Luke Romano, 20 Ardie Savea, 21 TJ Perenara, 22 Lima Sopoaga, 23 Anton Lienert-Brown.
Photo: Matt King/Getty Images
