Ireland score first-ever win on Kiwi shores to keep All Blacks series alive
Ireland have created history in Dunedin, beating the All Blacks in New Zealand for the first time ever to keep their series hopes alive.
For the fourth time since 2016, Ireland have come up trumps against the Kiwis, beating their modern-day rivals 23-12 under the roof of Forsyth Barr Stadium.
Ireland’s win came in vastly different circumstances to that of their other three victories in Chicago and Dublin, however, as penalties and cards of varying colours proved plentiful throughout this encounter.
Both teams were hammered by card-happy referee Jaco Peyper, but it was the All Blacks who felt the pinch the most as they were forced to play with 14 men for 50 minutes, and were occasionally left to play with only 13 on the park.
There were even calls by some that some miscalls by the officials left Ian Foster’s men in a fortuitous position as they believed the Kiwis should have been reduced to 12 players amid some card confusion near the end of the first half.
Nevertheless, no number of cards can overshadow the importance of this win for Ireland, who have finally broken their duck by tasting success on New Zealand soil, and keeping their hopes of a maiden series win against the All Blacks alive.
Likewise, the underlying pressure that continues to surround Foster and his assistants will only amplify in the wake of this fixture, setting up a blockbusting all-or-nothing clash in Wellington next week.
Quick to put the memories of last week’s 42-19 drubbing at Eden Park to rest, Ireland ploughed their way to the tryline in under three minutes when prop Andrew Porter dragged Quinn Tupaea with him into New Zealand’s in-goal area.
Porter’s try came on the back of a big line break from lock Tadhg Beirne, who was put into acres of space thanks to superb work of Josh van der Flier’s ability to suck Kiwi defenders and pop a deft offload into his teammate’s clutches.
The rest of the work was done by Ireland’s dominant forward pack, which allowed the quality ball-playing of halves partners Jamison Gibson-Park and Jonathan Sexton to ensure the tourists the early lead.
Ireland continued to ride their luck through the opening few minutes of the contest, as ill-discipline and lineout woes – perhaps a consequence of Sam Whitelock’s concussion-enforced unavailability – plagued the All Blacks.
That much enabled Sexton to add an extra three points to the scoreboard when Irish No 8 Caelan Doris got himself all over Brodie Retallick’s ball, giving the visitors an early double-digit lead.
Things only went from bad to worse for the All Blacks when rookie wing Leicester Fainga’anuku was sent to the sin bin after taking out his opposite Mack Hansen while attempting a charge down.
It was an incident eerily similar to that of Caleb Clarke’s red card against Moana Pasifika earlier in the Super Rugby Pacific season, but the television match official deemed Fainga’anuku’s contact was to Hansen’s chest rather than his head.
Therefore, Fainga’anuku’s foul play warranted a yellow card rather than a red, but Ireland struggled to capitalise on his absence as the concession of handling errors and penalties gifted the All Blacks a get-out-of-jail-free card.
The All Blacks were then reduced to 13 men after prop Ofa Tu’ungafasi stifled a threatening Irish attack when he tackled Garry Ringrose without the ball as the away side narrowed in on their opponents’ goal line.
Once again, though, some desperate and impactful Kiwi defence forced Ireland backwards, holding the opposition at bay until Fainga’anuku was reintroduced to the field.
They were soon back to 13 men, however, as some poor tackle technique by Angus Ta’avao – Tu’ungafasi’s yellow card replacement – resulted in a red card after he sickeningly collided heads with Ringrose.
Perhaps the biggest punishment from that indiscretion came after Tu’ungafasi returned to the field, which meant the All Blacks were back to a full complement of players.
As such, someone had to leave the park as the de facto red-carded player given Ta’avao was only on the field as Tu’ungafasi’s temporary replacement.
Star No 8 Ardie Savea was the unlucky candidate, leaving the All Blacks bereft of one of their key figures.
Even then, Ireland couldn’t utilise New Zealand’s on-field loss of quality and quantity, as poor discipline and execution saw them cough up multiple chances well inside All Blacks territory.
The hosts went on to make them pay, rolling their sleeves up and marching their way downfield through their forwards, which ended up in Beauden Barrett dotting down right under the sticks after the half-time siren.
Ireland were even handed a sin bin of their own as Peyper brandished a yellow card to Irish lock James Ryan, leaving both teams with 14 men as both sides entered the break.
That was about as bright as things got for the All Blacks, whose playing stocks were depleted again early in the second half when Retallick had to undergo a head injury assessment.
He was sorely missed as Ireland put New Zealand under the pump up front, breaching their gain line in an impressive sequence of phase play, with Porter bolstering his side’s lead by crashing over under the sticks for a second try.
Not even Retallick’s successful head injury assessment return could stop Ireland’s accrual of points, as Sexton added a three from point-blank range to grant his side the match’s biggest lead.
Strong line speed pressure and tenacious breakdown defence paved the way for a further three points to Sexton as the match ticked towards its final 10 minutes.
The growing scoreboard pressure that came with Sexton’s goal-kicking accuracy created an insurmountable lead that the All Blacks never captured.
A consolation Will Jordan try came far too late in the piece for it to impact the final result, and questions will continue to be asked about Foster and his All Blacks squad as Andy Farrell’s Ireland revel in their famous win.
Ireland 23 (2 tries to Andrew Porter; 2 conversions and 3 penalties to Jonathan Sexton)
All Blacks 12 (Tries to Beauden Barrett and Will Jordan; conversion to Jordie Barrett)
Comments on RugbyPass
“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
3 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
2 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
3 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
3 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
3 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
2 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
4 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to commentsJake White is a brilliant coach and a master in the press. This is another masterclass in media relations and PR but its also a very narrow view with arguments that dont always hold water. White wants his team to win, he wants the best players in SA and wants his team competitive. You however have to face up to the reality of a poor exchange rate and big clubs with big budgets. SA Rugby cant compete and unless it can find more money SA players will keep leaving regardless of Springbok eligibility and this happened in 2015 - 2017. Also rugby is not cricket. Cricket has 3 formats and T20 cricket is where the money is at. When it comes to club vs country the IPL is king but that wont happen because the international calendar does not clash with the club calendar in rugby. So the argument about rugby going down the same path as cricket is really a non-starter
22 Go to commentsNZ rugby seem not to have learnt anything from professional rugby. Super rugby was dying and SA left before they died with the competition. SA rugby did a u turn on their approach to international players playing overseas and such players are now selected for Bok teams. As much as each country would love to retain their players playing in local competitions, this is the way the world is evolving my friends. Move with it or stay 20 years behind the times. One more thing. NZ rugby hierarchy think they are the big cheese. Take a more humble approach guys. You do not seem to have your players best interests at heart.
3 Go to commentsBeaches? In Cardiff? Where?
1 Go to commentsHe is right , the Crusaders will be a threat. Scott Barrett, ( particularly), Fergus Burke , Codie Taylor, ( from sabbatical) etc due back soon for the Crusaders. There are others like Zach Gallagher too. People can right the Crusaders off, Top 8 , here we come !!
1 Go to commentsWe will always struggle for money to match the other sides but the least the WRU can do is invest properly in Welsh rugby. Too much has been squandered on vanity projects like the hotel and roof walk amongst others which will never see a massive return. Hanging the 4 pro sides out to dry over the last decade is now coming back to bite the WRU financially as well as on the pitch. You reap what you sow.
1 Go to commentsWhat do you get if you cross a doctor with a fish? A plastic sturgeon
14 Go to commentsWhat happened to feleti Kaitu’u? Hasnt played in a while right?
1 Go to commentsGregor I just can’t agree with you. You are trying to find something that just isn’t there. Jordie Barrett has signed until 2028. By the end of that he would have spent probably 11-12 years on Super Rugby and you say he can’t possibly have one season playing somewhere else. It is absurd. What about this scenario, the NZR play hard ball and he decides to leave and play overseas. How would that affect the competition. There seems to be an agenda by certain journalists to push certain agendas and don’t like it when it’s not to their liking. I fully support the NZR on this. Gregor needs to get a life.
3 Go to commentsHope he stays as believe he can do a great job.
1 Go to comments