Ireland had a disappointing night losing to the All Blacks in their autumn opener.
Ireland’s 19-game winning streak at the Aviva Stadium came to a demoralizing end as they were punished by New Zealand for an undisciplined performance peppered with mistakes.
The All Blacks won 23-13 in Dublin thanks to six Damian McKenzie penalties and a late try from Will Jordan, their first win in the Irish capital since 2016.
Friday’s encounter, the first since the blockbuster Rugby World Cup quarter-final in Paris 13 months ago, was a very monotonous affair, dominated by knock-ons and slow scrum set-ups.
McKenzie scored 18 points on the night as Ireland lost at home for the first time since 2021 but only the second time under manager Andy Farrell, with full-back Jordan scoring the All Blacks’ only try.
Ireland took a 13-9 lead early in the second half thanks to a try from Josh van der Flier and a shot from Jack Crowley, but it was a frustratingly disappointing night for Farrell. Farrell is preparing to leave Ireland at the end of the month. The British and Irish Lions will tour Australia next summer.
Ireland – Try: Van der Flier (43). Cons: Crowley (44). Pen: Crowley (8, 40).
new zealand – Try: Jordan (69). Pen: Mackenzie (10, 29, 38, 49, 62, 65).
Scoring order: 3-0, 3-3, 3-6. 3-9, 6-9, 13-9, 13-12, 13-15, 13-18, 13-23.
How Ireland beat the All Blacks
Will Jordan secured victory for New Zealand with a late try
Under the lights and in front of a packed Lansdowne Road, Ireland conceded in the 8th minute with Jamison Gibson-Park delivering a powerful box-kick into the middle of the pitch, Crawley’s penalty after Jordie Barrett thwarted Mack Hansen. I took the lead.
However, after making the most of his good fortune to sprint forward for a crucial line break after scrum-half Cortez Latima fumbled his own pass, Finlay Bealham was penalized and Mackenzie kicked a direct penalty and the All Blacks equalized within three minutes. Ronan Kelleher for lying on the wrong side while attempting a breakdown pull.
With Tadhg Furlong sidelined with a hamstring injury, Finlay Bealham started at tighthead prop for Ireland. Mack Hansen will make his first international appearance in 2024, with No. 8 Caelan Doris taking over as captain.
New Zealand made two forced changes to their squad, with Damian McKenzie and Asef Aumua coming in for Beauden Barrett and Cody Taylor, who were ruled out with concussions, in their win over England.
New Zealand then found time to press inside Ireland’s half, but the home team’s defense proved strong and kept the visitors at bay. As the strong defense continued to force knock-ons and turnovers, Gibson-Park made a great tackle on McKenzie.
But Gibson Park was ruled offside, allowing McKenzie to take the corner, the best chance of the Test so far. The All Blacks were unable to make a count as Asafo Aumua’s lineout throw was clearly bent.
McKenzie added the next goal just before the half-hour mark after a controversial scrum turnover resulted in a shaky Irish defense conceding a penalty near their own posts.
Damian McKenzie scores 18 points with 6 penalty kicks.
Ireland quickly missed a clear chance in New Zealand’s 22 when Kelleher carelessly kicked the ball forward and it spilled out of the ruck after a carry by Bundy Aki. James Ryan then took a penalty and New Zealand beat the other end 9-3. roll.
Just before half-time Aki’s brilliant carry and offload saw Garry Ringrose hit over the head by Jordie Barrett, who was shown a yellow and was lucky to avoid a red.
Crowley kicked his second penalty just before the end of the first half, making it 9-6 after a rough 40 scrum-driven minutes.
Josh van der Flier put Ireland ahead with a cross early in the second half, but they were again unable to score.
All Blacks winger Marc Teller was awarded a penalty for interference on the restart, but Ireland were unable to capitalize on their first chance after Crawley took a corner kick, giving the visitors maul possession. counterattacked.
But Ireland’s response was excellent, forcing Sam Cane past his own try line into a five-metre scrum. From the next attack, Van der Flier struggled on the line and scored the opening try in the 44th minute.
Crowley converted well to take a 13-9 advantage and Ireland almost ended with a second try after a hard tackle from Gibson Park forced a turnover. New Zealand survived the onslaught, although James Rowe was penalized for a neck roll.
Bundy Aki has been a bright spark for Ireland, but he hasn’t been as threatening as he has been in the past.
Hooker Aumua scored what looked like a breakdown penalty that instantly changed the momentum for the All Blacks, while McKenzie showed great composure to fire a long-range shot after the ball fell off the tee.
The strike cut Ireland’s lead to just one point, and Barrett returned from the sin bin moments later, with New Zealand still firmly in contention.
McKenzie missed a chance to regain the lead when he hit the post with a central penalty in the 57th minute, but a scrum call was harsh on Ireland and New Zealand took the lead just after the hour mark. The scrum was given away only due to a head injury to replacement prop Tom O’Toole.
New Zealand extended their lead to five points through MacKenzie’s spike after a poor play by substitute lock Ian Henderson who failed to release at the ruck. Then, following some quick attacking play from the All Blacks, Jordan dived into the corner and the lead quickly expanded to 10 points.
Ireland’s stand-in fly-half Ciaran Frawley knocked in a second high ball with no pressure to give Ireland time, but Lowe clocked an astonishing 50 minutes and 22 seconds, just over his own 22 seconds. recorded and gave hope to Ireland.
However, Ardie Savea ended those hopes with a crucial breakdown penalty for his own 22 with six minutes remaining, as the All Blacks completed an impressive series of wins over England and Ireland in Europe.
Analysis: Alarm bells ringing after a limp Ireland game
James Rowe depressed after the final whistle
Tony Tai of Sky Sports:
This was a very different Ireland than we were used to seeing.
Control, precision, good decision-making and ruthlessness were all missing, and any thoughts of revenge for last year’s World Cup quarter-final loss to New Zealand were quickly forgotten.
Concerns over set pieces were quickly realized as Ireland struggled at both scrums and lineouts, but a lack of kicking game and terrible discipline proved costly on a damp Dublin night. Chuck’s numerous handling errors, missed passes and inability to compete with New Zealand in the air will set off alarm bells for Farrell and his coaching staff.
But with better defending at the end, New Zealand could have been out of sight by half-time. Barrett’s sin-binning gave Ireland hope, and Van der Flier’s try gave them the lead after the restart, but their attack was sluggish and they never again messed with the scoreboard.
Their first home defeat since 2021 was not the way the IRFU had hoped to start their 150th anniversary celebrations. It’s back to square one ahead of Friday’s dangerous visit to Argentina.
Doris is irritated by poor discipline.
Ireland captain keiran doris said virgin one:
“That’s not us. That’s not the best performance we can do. Part of that is definitely down to New Zealand quality.”
“I thought we were reactive the whole time. They took a lot more shots than we did. That was the message at halftime. We felt he took a lot away from them. , and we felt it was our turn to grab the momentum. We did that early on.”Although we didn’t get the try, they definitely came back. Our discipline was a big factor.
“Was it due to rust? Maybe that’s not an excuse for us.”
Farrell: ‘Irish players are broken’
Ireland head coach andy farrell said virgin one:
“The players are very disappointed and I’m disappointed for them too. They prepared well and were excited about the game. We made too many consecutive errors and at times We held ourselves back.”
“Simply put, the best team won.”
What’s next?
Ireland’s Autumn Nations series begins against Argentina at Allianz Stadium on Friday 15th November (8.10pm kick-off), while New Zealand face France at the Stade de France on 16th November (8.10pm). do.
