Match: 33-25
During the XV tour of France we were horrified to see the vibrancy of this Kiwis who came out of three marches against Tonga, suffering from the wrath of blacks, not imperialism on its lands. -0) and Fiji (57-23 and 60-13). The fears were somewhat justified, however the New Zealanders were not always consistent.
Most of the time, all the Blocks have shut down their Pacific neighbors. Through the airtight defensive curtain, they grabbed the throat and repelled every impact. Very clumsy at first, they gradually put in the right stuff, the Australians were an obstacle in the win and rucks stages, and Save Reese (9 -8) had to wait until the siren before recording their first attempt. After the break, the Blacks swam all over Australia, flattening three times in a quarter of an hour through Richie Mounga (23-8), David Howley (28-8) and Damien McKenzie (33-8).
100
All-Pack Scrum-Half Aaron Smith celebrated his 100th cup this Saturday in Auckland. The Highlanders player had a good game, including two assists.
Despite being dominant, Ian Foster’s players didn’t always provide the best profiles. Fined several times in the first period (final whistle 7, 10), they lowered their awareness in the last ten minutes. The Wallabies, the authors of a superb joint selection completed by Andrew Kelley just before the break (8-9), pierced the New Zealand defense three times, returning to 25-33 before the end of time for confidence. The best.
The two teams will meet for the second Pledislow Cup meeting in two weeks in Australia.
Fact: Best attempt … denied
If the Blocks take a while to get into it, they won’t have to wait long to show off their talent in the second half. Returning from the locker room, the New Zealanders scored “a test at the end of the world.” Moonga, from his five-meter line, knocked down Lolesio and Wilson. After eight assists, Reese sank into the in-goal for his brace. In the middle of the action a forward attempt from Smith finally refused.