All Blacks coach Scott Roberson can be pleased with the effort his forwards displayed, writes Gregor Paul. Photo / Photosport
All Blacks coach Scott Roberson can be pleased with the effort his forwards displayed, writes Gregor Paul. Photo / Photosport
THREE KEY FACTS
The All Blacks began the new era of Scott Robertson as coach with a 16-15 win over England
It was a close encounter, with England leading until the last quarter of play
The second match in the series is next Saturday, at Eden Park in Auckland.
Gregor Paul is one of New Zealand’s most respected rugby writers and columnists. He has won multiple awards for journalism and has written several books about sport.
OPINION
The Razor area has begun with something more akin to a pop than a bang, but nevertheless, the new-lookAll Blacks have banked a victory in their first outing.
It was a scrap to the death; an impossibly grim struggle in the last 10 minutes when both sides decided they were going to play to extract penalties. New Zealand – just – had the wherewithal to find a way to win.
It wasn’t pretty, overly coherent or full of magical highs by any means, but there was graft, an outstanding scrummaging effort and enough rugby intelligence, refined skill and desire to sneak home against an England team who will feel they found the All Blacks’ soft spots but couldn’t quite exploit them.
There was certainly no wow factor in the All Blacks’ victory – no prolonged sweeping passages of cleverly designed and precisely executed new starter plays.
They looked vulnerable and a bit uncertain in periods – a little flummoxed by England’s umbrella defence and a bit short of attacking ideas when things didn’t quite go their way after a few phases.
But what they didn’t lack was belief, and given the troubles the All Blacks had at times last year staying focused and disciplined, this was a breakthrough victory given the way there were no wild acts or dumb moments.
It was a victory built on desire, a scrum that everyone other than the referee knew was dominant, and a masterclass in defensive work at the breakdown.
These were the three qualities that gave the All Blacks what they needed to stay in a fight it started to feel they were losing midway through the second half.
Having spent the first half kicking nearly all their possession away, England took greater control of proceedings in the first 20 minutes of the second half when they kept the ball in hand, kept their big men coming around the corner and stressed the All Blacks defence.
It was a formula they will no doubt lean into more heavily next week, because the All Blacks were only able to thwart them thanks to the turnover magic of Ardie Savea.
All Blacks coach Scott Roberson can be pleased with the effort his forwards displayed, writes Gregor Paul. Photo / Photosport
He was able to pull off his usual two or three key turnovers at critical times and stop England when they had the All Blacks in desperate straits.
The other star of the show was the scrum, which, despite a few impetuous moments, the odd technical gremlin, and some mad rulings by the referee, had England in trouble.
It was a weapon the All Blacks could rely on to deliver them a much-needed penalty, and it’s clear the real weaponry in Scott Robertson’s team lies in the front row.
He has inherited a world-class cohort of props who can deliver a destructive scrum and yet play on their feet, too – carry the ball, make tackles and get themselves over the ball at the breakdown.
The effort from all four props was outstanding, but Ethan de Groot and Tyrel Lomax were just too much for England to handle and the All Blacks of 2024 can be confident as they build into the season, that they have a pack that can probably out-scrummage every team they meet, maybe even South Africa.
The attacking magic will have to wait, but for now, there is reason to be buoyed by the fighting qualities the All Blacks showed, their calm under pressure, and their ability to regain the momentum in the last five minutes.
These are hugely important attributes and in a sense, we saw, despite not seeing much, precisely what Razor said the All Blacks would deliver – rugby flexible enough to win games.
Being able to find the little weak points and exploit them are what matters in tests and England will be feeling that was the difference between the two teams in the end. There was so little between them, but New Zealand found a way to pull off key turnovers, win a few scrum penalties and put them under enough pressure to win key moments that led to point-scoring opportunities.
It may have been a hard watch at times, but that’s often the nature of test matches and the victory provides assurance that the All Blacks are building a brand of rugby that looks capable of helping them scale the summit of the world game again.
What came through in Dunedin was a sense that the players knew what they were doing on both sides of the ball, and while there was a lack of accuracy at times, there was no lack of certainty about their strategic intent and individual roles.
The Razor era, after a bumpy start, is airborne and ready to fly a little higher in the weeks to come.
