The All Blacks ran in 12 tries to demolish Samoa 78-0 in Auckland yesterday, sending a clear warning to the British and Irish Lions ahead of next week’s first Test.
It was a game set up for the All Blacks to clear out any rust before they front the composite team at Eden Park next weekend, and rust there was.
If there were no teething problems in their first run of the season, the score would have been higher as tries went begging.
Photo: AFP
Tackles were also missed, but New Zealand still kept Samoa scoreless in what ballooned to their second biggest win against them.
The All Blacks led 28-0 with four tries in the first half and added another eight in a sparkling second spell, including one to new cap Vaea Fifita, who came off the bench to score with his first touch of the ball.
“Samoa started out really physical and really tested us,” All Blacks captain Ben Smith said.
Photo: AFP
“We had to be really disciplined tonight and when we were, we started to profit from that,” Smith said.
“We’ll go away and learn from that and make sure we’re better next week,” he said. “There’s a lot of learning there that will be great for our group.”
There was plenty for the Lions to take note of, especially the control of the All Blacks forwards at the set piece and the audacious offloads. When there was the merest hint of a counterattack opportunity, the All Blacks struck hard.
Photo: AFP
Aaron Smith justified his return to the starting line-up as he was central to directing play into the gaps.
However, the world champions revived a problem of old when they made a slow start and displayed a creaking defense.
“We just didn’t capitalize on those first 20 minutes,” Samoa captain Kahn Fotuali’i said. “We got down to their tryline and coughed it up too many times.”
“It was tough; they’re not No. 1 in the world for no reason and we knew what we were up against,” he said.
Samoa dominated territory for the opening quarter, with centers Alapati Leiua and Kieron Fonotia carving through the All Blacks backs, where Sonny Bill Williams was twice found wanting.
Despite the pressure, the All Blacks remained calm and when the chance came to counterattack they pounced.
After defending desperately for the first 10 minutes, it took two well-placed Aaron Smith clearing kicks to ease the pressure and once inside the Samoa 22, a pop pass from Beauden Barrett saw Anton Lienert-Brown score the opening try.
In the closing 10 minutes of the half the All Blacks scored three more tries, to Barrett, Ardie Savea and Williams.
Aaron Smith started the second half using turnover ball to spark a 60m move for Israel Dagg to score, before Julian Savea, Codie Taylor, Beauden Barrett, Fifita, T.J. Perenara and Ardie Savea also scored in the second half as the All Blacks ran riot.
In an earlier match at Eden Park, a sole try to Alex Cuthbert and four penalties to Sam Davies steered Wales to a 24-6 win over highly physical Tonga in the rain.
A seven-point penalty try in the last play of the game embellished the scoreline for a much-changed Wales, who were missing Test regulars and their coach because of the Lions tour.
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
Former world No. 2 Paula Badosa has withdrawn from this week’s Wuhan Open, organizers said on Tuesday, amid a racism row over an online photograph. Tournament organizers said the Spaniard had pulled out of the WTA 1000 tournament, citing a gastrointestinal illness, hours before her first-round match against Australian Ajla Tomljanovic. News outlets including Britain’s the Telegraph earlier reported that Badosa had posted a photo on Instagram in which she appeared to imitate a Chinese face by placing chopsticks on the corners of her eyes. The photo was taken last week in a restaurant in Beijing, where she reached the semi-finals of the
PREDICTION: Last week, when Yu’s father made a wrong turn to the former champions’ parking lot, he said that his son could park there after this year With back-to-back birdies on the 18th hole, Kevin Yu fulfilled his driving range-owning dad’s prediction that he would win the Sanderson Farms Championship and become Taiwan’s third golfer to claim a US PGA Tour title. The Taoyuan-born 26-year-old, who represented Taiwan in the Olympic golf at Paris, saw off Californian Beau Hossler in a playoff at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi, on Sunday. Having drained a 15-foot putt to claw his way into the playoff, Yu rolled in from five feet on the first extra hole, ensuring he joined Chen Tze-chung (LA Open in 1987) and Pan Cheng-tsung (RBC
LeBron James and eldest son Bronny James claimed a piece of NBA history on Sunday after making their long-awaited first appearance alongside each other for the Los Angeles Lakers. The duo appeared together at the start of the second quarter in the Lakers’ 118-114 preseason defeat to the Phoenix Suns in Palm Desert, east of Los Angeles. While LeBron James impressed with 19 points in just 16 minutes and 20 seconds on court before sitting out the second half, Bronny found the going harder with zero points in just over 13 minutes on court. The younger James attempted just one
RSS