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'Banished any doubts with this masterclass' - Richie Mo'unga turns heads with nearly perfect performance in Bledisloe III
After drawing the first test of the year 16-all, the All Blacks have gone from strength to strength, with their most recent outing especially impressive. The New Zealanders outclassed the Wallabies in Bledisloe III in Sydney, winning 43-5 in a record-breaking performance.
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Flyhalf Richie Mo’unga was central to the visitors dominance, guiding his side to a decisive victory with a nearly perfect game.
The 26-year-old scored 23-points at ANZ Stadium, including a six-minute double half-way through the first half. Mo’unga also came close to scoring what would’ve been his third just before the break but was tripped up by Wallabies fullback Dane Haylett-Petty five metres from the try-line.
He also had one try assist on the night, sending Jordie Barrett through a gap with just over six minutes left on the clock. Barrett ran the second most metres of any player on Saturday, bettered only by Mo’unga who ran 30 metres more for 101.
Richie Mo’unga was a freak last night in Sydney. We know you want to see his highlights package ? pic.twitter.com/l1hEFijMAs
— All Blacks (@AllBlacks) November 1, 2020
Bledisloe III was arguably the coming of age of Mo’unga in a black jersey. Many fans and pundits have said over the past few seasons that he’s been the best flyhalf in New Zealand, winning four-straight Super Rugby titles including Super Rugby Aotearoa.
But he’s been unable to consistently replicate that form in the test arena – certainly not to the level that we saw on Saturday.
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All Blacks scrumhalf TJ Perenara said on Sunday morning that he “expected” a performance like that from Mo’unga, after seeing what he’s done for both the Crusaders and at training. He added that while watching the flyhalf’s performance, that he couldn’t help but think “man, that’s a bad man out there.”
Mo’unga’s showing of skill, patience and class definitely turned heads, with fans on Twitter singing the praises of the All Blacks pivot.
Initially thought he struggled to take the Crusaders form to the All Blacks… banished any doubts with this masterclass??????????
— Phuti Pooe (@P1Savage) November 1, 2020
I have to agree Richie stepped up in game 3. 1 & 2 he was still sleeping. Just when we needed everyone to be at their best and they delivered. We’ll done all round
— Eric Chow (@tawaniwai) November 1, 2020
Outstanding performance. A joy to watch.
— ODC ??????????? (@odcous2019) November 1, 2020
He was brilliant??
— Mark Muchai (@Muchaiki) November 1, 2020
Richie Mo’unga is the most talented and best performing rugby player in the world today ??
— ChiWAP-onised Dark Force ?? (@Dangurangu) October 31, 2020
Richie Mo’unga seems to have landed the lead role in A Perfect 10 the sequel. pic.twitter.com/muxKyKRy3J
— Phillip Rollo (@ByPhillipRollo) October 31, 2020
Could watch Richie Mo’unga play rugby all day, quality player.
— Ross Jones (@RossJones1992) October 31, 2020
This Richie Mo’Unga is some player! @AllBlacks looking very strong! #BledisloeCup
— Mark Rogers (@markarogers) October 31, 2020
Richie Mo’unga really is something else ?@AllBlacks
— David Owen (@DavidOwen10) October 31, 2020
Richie Mo’unga ????? 5 Star performance ??? what a player he has been in 2020 ?? he just keeps doing his thing ????? Super Player
— Maorio ? (@Doc_Torio) October 31, 2020
This is the Richie Mo’unga we’ve been wanted to see in a black jersey!!! ??? https://t.co/MUqaLcKUau
— James?? (@CFCJames56) November 1, 2020
If I was making a best XV michael Hooper would be the first name on my team sheet. Class act.
Seems like richie mo’unga might be getting on there too!
— Matt ??????? (@MattsWanderings) October 31, 2020
Richie Mo’unga is making the @wallabies look like the local U14’s#AUSvNZL
— Kephren Izzard (@KephIzzard) October 31, 2020
Shades of Dan Carter there from Richie Mo’unga. #BledisloeCup
— Sam Hill (@5amHill) October 31, 2020
Mo’unga’s Player of the Match performance also reignites the debate surrounding the dual playmaker strategy that the All Blacks have adopted.
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Beauden Barrett, who won two World Rugby Player of the Year titles at flyhalf, was switched to fullback in an effort to accommodate Mo’unga in the All Blacks starting side.
Barrett was phenomenal in Bledisloe II, but was kept quiet two weeks later in Sydney, held to just 15 run metres. The two did link up for Mo’unga’s second try though, with Barrett placing a nicely weighted chip kick in behind the Wallabies defensive line for his flyhalf to chase.
Mo’unga stepped up and controlled the All Blacks attack while the hosts managed Barrett, which as fans on Twitter have suggested, bodes well for the future of the tactic.
Prefer “twin playmakers”. Interesting that this lead to Mo’unga attacking running game featuring. Richie’s try from the chip was a sublime bit of play, and how fitting that Beauden was on his shoulder as he ran to score.
— Aidan (@allsumnull) October 31, 2020
Switching the best 10 in the world to 15 to make room for this guy? pic.twitter.com/0GS54LK58r
— Steve Raymond (@steveray) November 1, 2020
Even in the face of Barrett (arguably the most gifted player for a generation) – Richie Mo’unga has cemented himself as the standalone 10 in world rugby.
Incredible.
— Jake Kane (@JakeKane2) October 31, 2020
When Richie Mo’unga and Beauden Barrett are clicking you can’t make any mistakes. And the Wallabies have made plenty. Kind of a tough match to watch.
— Stuart Penninger (@StairmasterStu) October 31, 2020
The All Blacks take on the Wallabies for the fourth and final time this year in Brisbane this Saturday, with the Bledisloe Cup already locked up.
The clash will also serve as the second Tri Nations fixture, with that silverware still up for grabs. Both teams are set to face Argentina in the weeks following Bledisloe IV.
Comments on RugbyPass
After their 5/0 start, I had the Crusaders to finish Top 4 only…they lost the plot in Perth but will reload and back themselves vs 4th placed Rebels…
3 Go to commentsBoth nations missed a great opportunity to book a game that would have had a lot of interest from around the world. I understand these games can’t be organised in 5 minutes but they should have found a way to make it happen. I don’t think Wales are ducking anyone but it’s a bad look haha.
3 Go to commentsIt will be fascinating to see the effect that Jo Yapp has. If they can compete with Canada and give BFs a run for their money that will be progress
1 Go to commentsFollowing his dream and putting in the work. Go well young fella!
3 Go to commentsPerhaps filling Twickenham is one of Mitchell’s KPIs. I doubt whether both September matches will be at Twickenham on consecutive weekends. I would take the BF one to a large provincial stadium so as not to give them the advantage and experience of playing at Twickenham before a large crowd prior to the RWC.
2 Go to commentsvery unfortunate for Kitshoff, but big opportunity potentially for Nché to prove he is genuinely the best loosehead in the world, rather than just a specialist finisher. Presuming that if Kitshoff is out, it will also give Steenekamp a chance to come into the 23? Or are others likely to be ahead of him?
1 Go to commentsA long held question in popular culture asks if art imitates life or does the latter influence the former? Over this 6 nations I can ask the same question of the media influencing the thoughts of its audience or vice versa. Nobody wants to see cricket scores in rugby, as a spectacle it is not sustainable. With so many articles about England’s procession and lack of competition it feeds the epicaricacy of many looking for an opportunity to pounce. England are not the first team to dominate nor does it happen only in rugby, think Federer, Nadal, Red Bull or Mercedes, Manchester Utd, Australia in tests and World Cups. Instead of celebrating the achievements why find reasons to falsify it pointing towards larger playing pool, professional for a longer period or mitigate with the lack of growth in other nations. Can we not enjoy it while it is here and know that it won’t last for ever, others coveting what England have will soon take the crown, ask the aforementioned?
6 Go to commentsShame he won’t turn out for the Netherlands now they’re improving. U20s are Euro champs and in the U20 Trophy this year. The senior sides gets better every year too.
3 Go to commentsWill rugbypass tv be showing these games?
1 Go to commentsWell where do you start, the fact that England have a professional domestic league and Ireland’s is fully amatuer, that they have fully seperated professional squads at Fifteens and Sevens (7’s thinly disguised as GB), and Ireland have fully pro Sevens squad who loan some players back to the Semi-Professional Fifteens squad (moved from amateur for only a year or so) for a few games at 6N & RWC’s. The Women’s games is a shambles, and is at risk of killing itself by pushing for professionalism when the market isn’t really there to support it outside one or two countnries..
6 Go to commentsWayne Smith's input didn't have as much impact on the last final as Davison's red card for Thompson. England were 14 points up and flying when that happened.
6 Go to commentsBilly's been playing consistently well for 2 - 3 seasons now and deserves a look in at the top level. Ioane and ALB are still first choice but there needs to be injury cover and succession. His partnership with Jordie gives him first dibs you'd think. Go the Hurricanes.
3 Go to commentsIt’s not up to Wales to support Georgian Rugby. That’s up to International Rugby and Georgia. I sympathise with Georgia’s decent attempt to create this fixture. But for Wales the proposed match up is just a potential stick to beat them with and a potential big psychological blow that young Welsh team doesn’t need. (I’m Irish BTW.)
3 Go to commentsCale certainly looks great in space, but as you say, he has struggled in contact. At 23 years old, turning 24 this year, he should be close to full physical maturity and yet there exists a considerable gap in the power and physicality required for international rugby. Weight doesn’t automatically equate to power and physicality either. Can he go from a player who’s being physically dominated in Super rugby to physically dominating in international rugby in 1 or 2 years? That’s a big ask but he may end up being a late bloomer.
29 Go to commentsIf rugby wants to remain interesting in the AI era then it will need to work on changing the rules. AI will reduce the tactical advantage of smart game plans, will neutralize primary attacking weapons, and will move rugby from a being a game of inches to a game of millimetres. It will be about sheer athleticism and technique,about avoiding mistakes, and about referees. Many fans will find that boring. The answer is to add creative degrees of freedom to the game. The 50-22 is an example. But we can have fun inventing others, like the right to add more players for X minutes per game, or the equivalent of the 2-point conversion in American football, the ability to call a 12-player scrum, etc. Not saying these are great ideas, but making the point that the more of these alternatives you allow, the less AI will be able to lock down high-probability strategies. This is not because AI does not have the compute power, but because it has more choices and has less data, or less-specific data. That will take time and debate, but big, positive and immediate impact could be in the area of ref/TMO assistance. The technology is easily good enough today to detect forward passes, not-straight lineouts, offside at breakdown/scrum/lineout, obstruction, early/late tackles, and a lot of other things. WR should be ultra aggressive in doing this, as it will really help in an area in which the game is really struggling. In the long run there needs to be substantial creativity applied to the rules. Without that AI (along with all of the pro innovations) will turn rugby into a bash fest.
24 Go to commentsSouth Africa rarely play Ireland and France on these tours. Mostly, England, Scotland and Wales. I wonder why
2 Go to commentsIt was a let’s-see-what-you're-made-of type of a game. The Bulls do look good when the opposition allows them to, but Munster shut them down, and they could not find a way through. Jake should be very worried about their chances in the competition.
2 Go to commentsHats off to Fabian for a very impressive journey to date. Is it as ‘uniquely unlikely’ as Rugby Pass suggests, given Anton Segner’s journey at the Blues?
3 Go to commentsSad that this was not confirmed. When administrators talk about expanding the game they evidently don’t include pathways to the top tier of rugby for teams outside of the old boys club. Rugby deserves better, and certainly Georgia does.
3 Go to commentsLions might take him on if they move on Van Rooyen but I doubt he will want to go back, might consider it a step backwards for himself. Sharks would take him on but if Plumtree goes on to win the challenge cup they will keep him on. Also sharks showing some promising signs recently. Stormers and Bulls are stable and Springboks are already filled up. Quality coach though, interesting to see where he ends up
1 Go to comments