Share

All Blacks sweep Wallabies

Tokyo - The All Blacks battled to a 32-19 win over the Wallabies Saturday to complete a clean sweep of their four Bledisloe Cup Tests, but letting their arch-rivals end a try-scoring drought.

The Australians had a 16-13 lead at half-time after winger Peter Hynes scored the team's first try against New Zealand since Berrick Barnes crossed the line in the year's opening trans-Tasman Test in July.

Saturday's result stretched the All Blacks' winning streak against the Wallabies to seven Tests, a boost for New Zealand, who like their opponents will be looking to improve on a sub-par year as they head to Europe.

"It's obviously pleasing to have a 4-0 result against Australia because they are a good side. They put another pressure on our guys," All Blacks coach Graham Henry said of the Bledisloe Cup. "I think we should be proud of our performance."

Wallabies coach Robbie Deans said his side, with vice captain Barnes on the sidelines and heading home with a fresh ankle injury, made a "better effort" than the time they were shamed 33-6 by the All Blacks in their last Test.

"We built a lot of pressure and came short on a number of occasions," Deans said adding they were looking for some "finishing touch."

"We are very pleased," he said about the much-awaited try. "We tried to do more. We could have probably scored more."

The Australians took an early 6-0 lead through stand-off Matt Giteau's two penalty goals in front of a near-capacity 44,000 strong crowd at the Olympic Stadium.

But New Zealand pulled one back with stand-off Dan Carter's penalty and snatched the lead with left winger Sitiveni Sivivatu's converted try for 10-6.

After Carter added another penalty goal, Sivivatu was sin-binned for 10 minutes for a dangerous tackle, allowing the Wallabies to fight back.

Hynes dived down toward the right corner flag and it took officials several minutes to determine it was a try.

Giteau then made it 16-13 to end the first half.

The All Blacks conceded only one penalty goal to the Wallabies in the second half with right centre Conrad Smith adding one try and Carter two penalties and a conversion.

"We had a lot better field positions, much greater opportunities to attack the goal in the second half. The guys turned it around well," Henry said.

All Blacks skipper Richard McCaw said he had been pleased with the second half performance.

"We had to win the break down. We were getting beaten there. They were a bit more eager there and had the muscle on us in the first half and we couldn't get our game going," he said.

"So that was the key for the forwards to get a bit of go forward there and we did that and played at the right end of the field and put some pressure on.

"And defence. We forced some errors. The guys put some big hits in around the fringes and you've got to do that to get some critical turnovers and we got the points we required," he added.

Wallabies captain Rocky Elsom said: "Our kicking wasn't great and it put us under a lot of pressure."

"We needed to be able to put seven and eight phases together and we would have been looking pretty good," he said. "For whatever reason we couldn't do that and it cost us as we really needed tries there."

"We obviously weren't good enough," he said.

It was a seventh straight win for the All Blacks against the Wallabies, stretching their record to 81 wins against 32 defeats and four draws in the Bledisloe Cup series since 1931.

New Zealand lead the overall record against the Australians with 110 wins, 45 defeats and five draws.

It was also the first game of the All Blacks' six-game Northern Hemisphere Tour against Wales, Italy, England, France and the Barbarians.

They will play Wales on November 7 in Cardiff, Italy on November 14 in Milan, England on November 21 in London, France on November 28 in Marseille, and the Barbarians on December 5 in London.

After Tokyo, the Wallabies will leave on their first grand slam tour of Britain and Ireland in 25 years starting with a midweek match against Gloucester on Tuesday.
We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
25% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1471 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2250 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE