All Blacks thrash Wallabies to retain Bledisloe Cup
All Blacks displayed one of the most thrilling and clinical performances of the year when they defeated Wallabies in Christchurch to retain the Bledisloe Cup. This convincing win over their arch-rivals has left the Kiwis nearer to reclaiming dominance in the southern hemisphere. New Zealand defeated Australia 20-10 at the AMI Stadium in Christchurch.
Mils Muliaina and Conrad Smith contributed through tries whereas Dan Carter added 10 points through his kicks to steer All Blacks home with a convincing victory. This was New Zealand’s 13th consecutive Test victory and ninth in a row against Australia. Wallabies showed improved display from their previous outing in Melbourne but were equally kept at bay through rock-solid defence of their old rivals. Australia scored a try from Kurtley bale whereas Matt Giteau scored the conversion and the penalty. The match exhibited perfect display of defensive tactics as only three tries were scored in the match and that too in the first quarter.
Australia started the match confidently, determined to break the jinx against their trans-Tasman rivals but it was the resolute defending from the All Blacks which moulded the fate of the match. Tom Donnelly started the proceedings with a brilliant break which allowed Muliaina to score his first try of the match. Carter added the lead for the hosts with his neat conversion. Wallabies came back in the match immediately through Beale who displayed impressive combination of pace and grit to bring his side on the scoreboard. Giteau’s conversion brought the sides on level score.
Conrad scored the decisive try which was followed by Carter’s conversion as the match was sealed in the favour of All Blacks. The host lineout provided some opportunities to Wallabies but they failed to capitalize on it. The All Blacks put the match beyond when Will Genia’s foul allowed the referee to award penalty to them. Carter sealed the match with his boot as he converted the penalty with utmost comfort and perfection. Afterwards, the match came short to defensive play as New Zealand held the Aussies’ onslaughts. Wallabies had the chance to come back into the match when Smith was penalised at breakdown but Giteau fell short to convert it. Similarly, Drew Mitchell opened up the play in the second half but was stopped by a rock-solid Kiwi defence. New Zealand’s superior defence allowed them to keep score static as the final whistle brought a 9th successive victory for Kiwis against their rivals.
New Zealand captain Richie McCaw has praised his team for outmanoeuvring their traditional rivals. He hailed the outstanding defence of his team as the reason for this historic victory. Talking to reporters after the match, All Blacks’ captain said, “Some big hits went in but the boys played defensively for each other and the boys are pretty happy with that. Such hard defensive games take their toll and the players' tanks were fairly empty with 10 minutes to go, but we felt we started to get on top of them physically.”
McCaw himself was instrumental in the victory as he pushed the extremes in the match. This was evident as referee Jonathan Kaplan warned him more than once during the match. His example was followed by his team which displayed extraordinary defence in the wake of Australian attack. He said, “In the first half we threw the ball around in their half and gave the ball away a few times. So in the second half we wanted to play a bit more field position. We had to do that. We had to do a lot of defending. Winning a test match against Australia, you've got to be happy with that.” Even coach Graham Henry was full of praise for his team. “It was much closer wasn't it? It was a much more traditional Test match. Both sides played well with very good defensive structures that did the job. So it was a matter of maintaining the ball and we maintained it well enough to win 20-10 and win the Bledisloe Cup so we're pretty happy with that,” the All Blacks’ coach said.
Tags: