Same old recipe sinks the Wallabies but it won't be so easy to replicate at the World Cup
The All Blacks 36-0 thumping over the Wallabies was a direct turnaround from the result in Perth but the recipe was the same as old, punishing mistakes by dining on turnovers and kick returns to hit the visitors while vulnerable.
Three out of the All Blacks’ five tries came in transition with two directly from turnovers and one from a kick return, while Sevu Reece’s superb individual piece of skill came from the All Blacks’ own kick. A crash ball to Sonny Bill Williams delivered the other score during phase play.
This has been the model for quite some time for dismantling the Wallabies.
Since the last World Cup, nearly a third of all All Blacks tries, 31.2%, have come directly within one phase of a turnover or kick transition against them. Likely more have been scored in the one or two phases after. Click plays, as Wayne Smith called them, have been clicking the Wallabies’ butt.
It is the extra cream that has enabled the All Blacks to put record point differences up against Australia, averaging over 35 points per game since the World Cup, jumping up by about 10 points in the last decade. The number of tries has nearly doubled from the last four-year cycle, up from 2.92 to 5.18 per game.
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Bad handling and poor kicking are fuel to the All Blacks machine and in testing conditions at Eden Park the Wallabies certainly provided that, coughing up ball regularly, forced and unforced.
With free-flowing situations unfolding, All Black rugby turns instinctual but highly deliberate. Every turnover? Spread to the edge. Or, more accurately, find the space. Getting to the edge is just a likely outcome. Simple, short passing will suffice – just make the decision quickly to find the unmarked man or mismatch.
The same philosophy is visible in nearly every All Blacks game. Whether it comes from winning lineout ball against the throw or stealing the ball at the ruck, you will see the ball moved through the hands quickly in search of the weak spot. Unscripted but targeted play.
A similar thought process is replicated on kick returns in the right situation.
“The previous week I kicked it and it didn’t work out so that was one of the learnings we made,” Barrett said about the Perth test.
Here is the situation he is referring to. From the scrum, the Wallabies wingers are half up in defence and Barrett kicks deep to find space available behind the defenders.
Kurtley Beale (15) has to backtrack but on the return serve kicks terribly, straight down the middle of the field.
The Wallabies defence is still backtracking from the congregation of the scrum, meaning they do not have the field spread well. Up to seven All Blacks are visible on the far side outside of the furthest Wallabies’ defenders, while Aaron Smith is circled at the bottom of the screen.
As Richie Mo’unga (10) brings it back, the Wallabies are caught really short with the All Blacks backline re-loading with Rieko Ioane (11), Jack Goodhue (13) and Anton Lienert-Brown (12) along with Beauden Barrett (15) linking in.
Faced with prop Allan Alaalatoa, flyhalf Christian Lealiifano and centre Samu Kerevi, Barrett chip kicks in behind despite having numbers, as well as Aaron Smith and Sam Cane running positive support lines to provide inside options.
At Eden Park a similar situation develops following an Aaron Smith box kick that is botched by Kurtley Beale. The All Blacks have a chance to kick long and find the turf again with the backfield depleted following the first kick.
Lealiifano has to backtrack before making the same mistake as Beale, kicking straight down the middle of the field. Aaron Smith is circled again in the middle of the picture.
The opportunity on the far side isn’t as great as it was in Perth but some speed by Barrett helps trim the numbers down.
Swerving away to the left side, Barrett is able to take out up to five defenders initially getting outside Lealiifano all the way to Nic White (9).
His pass to George Bridge (11) takes out one more defender in Adam Coleman and the All Blacks have a two-on-two in a large 15-metre corridor with a favourable one-on-one with Lukhan Salakaia-Loto (6).
The Crusaders’ winger does the rest by skinning the loose forward and linking up with Aaron Smith back on the inside.
“We gave George a one-on-one on a forward and he cut them up,” Barrett said following the Eden Park victory.
“That was very satisfying. Probably because it was one of the bad clips we showed in review the previous week, of me doing a chip when we had the similar scenario.”
Despite missing out on the first opportunity in Perth, the All Blacks’ intent was on display in the second try, to Rieko Ioane, moments after Barrett’s ill-advised chip kick.
A cold drop by Lukhan Salakaia-Loto is caught by Anton-Lienert-Brown, who is tackled immediately. From the quick recycle, Aaron Smith links up with fullback Beauden Barrett flying up from fullback, looking to re-join the line and spark something.
Another long ball by Barrett finds Dane Coles on Allan Alaalatoa out on the edge, who slips the prop’s grasp and finds Aaron Smith on an inside support line. Rieko Ioane finishes the movement via a hook pass from his halfback.
It’s the same operating procedure with aesthetic differences and it’s killed the Wallabies time and time again over the last four years.
In Perth, the Wallabies dominated by playing possession-based rugby that controlled the clock and starved the All Blacks of the ball in the second half, despite giving away two turnover/transition tries in the first. They found a style that worked but couldn’t replicate that at Eden Park in wet conditions as a higher error count returned and the possession balance normalised.
The challenge for the Wallabies will be to execute the Perth gameplan in various conditions if they are to ever reclaim the Bledisloe, especially in matches played in New Zealand. Their best bet is a game under the roof in Dunedin and two more back in Australia.
For the All Blacks, averaging nearly 40 points a game against the Wallabies doesn’t foreshadow anything. The Northern Hemisphere teams don’t make half as many errors as Australia and they have far better kicking games.
A much tighter contest will ensue with far fewer windows to run rampant on counter-attack.
The only Northern Hemisphere team that the All Blacks have encountered in the knockout phases of the World Cup over the last two campaigns is France, with four out of the six games against familiar Rugby Championship opponents. The French are just as prone to error-ridden rugby as the Wallabies, which despite the jitters of the past, bodes well should that match-up happen again in Japan.
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With only one game against England over the last four years, a 2-1 deficit against Ireland, and Wales now taking over the number one ranking, these are the matchups everyone wants to see. However, the All Blacks haven’t matched up against Ireland, Wales or England in a World Cup knockout match since 1995.
With a lack of serious competition in the Southern Hemisphere (until the recent Springboks revival), let’s hope the World Cup delivers the match-ups everyone is waiting for between the top four to five sides in the world – but don’t expect it to be so easy for the All Blacks to cut apart their opponents.
Wallabies coach Michael Cheika after Bledisloe II loss:
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Why cant I watch Rugby games please?
1 Go to commentsBeautiful shot from Finau, end of story. Gutted for Shaun Stevenson though.
4 Go to commentsThe Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
4 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
4 Go to commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
3 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
30 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
4 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
3 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
30 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
30 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
30 Go to comments