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All Blacks assistant coach credits bench impact to 'absolute champion'

Jason Ryan. (Photo by Marty Melville/Photosport)

The All Blacks have produced one of their best performances in 2024, toppling Ireland 23-13 in Dublin.

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Not too long ago the All Blacks were struggling to close out Test matches late in the game. But now Scott Robertson’s side has been on the right end of two close contests in a row, boosting the team’s confidence moving forward.

The Kiwis are now three from three on their end-of-year Northern tour and pose superb form heading into the last two Tests of 2024, against France in Paris and Italy in Turin. 

Ryan feels proud of the way his team began the grudge match in Dublin.

“Yeah hell of a contest, like massive respect for Ireland, they’ve been together a long time, they know their game, they know their identity and I’m just really proud about how we started the Test match.” Ryan said to Sir John Kirwan and Taylah Johnson on Sky Sport.

“We had a lot of urgency, in a short turnaround we said right at the start of the week that it will not be an excuse, we are fit enough and strong enough at this time of the year, just get yourself mentally right. 

“Just really proud of the boys that came on again and did a really good job.”

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Match Summary

2
Penalty Goals
6
1
Tries
1
1
Conversions
0
0
Drop Goals
0
85
Carries
118
1
Line Breaks
9
13
Turnovers Lost
12
6
Turnovers Won
6

Robertson’s side continued their positive bench impact against Ireland, significantly improving on the early bench struggles the All Blacks had in The Rugby Championship in  2024. 

Ryan credits his bench players and what they have added to this All Blacks squad of late.

“I think it’s fair to say probably at the start of the season it wasn’t probably quite where we were at, we have a bit more experience back, Patrick Tuipulotu has been unreal, Ofa (Tu’ungafasi) off the bench has been just an absolute champion, and we’ve got young boys that have added some pop.

“You know I can’t say enough about Asafo (Aumua) tonight, he was amazing, and he was last night too. Really proud of him, really proud.”

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Related

The Ireland vs All Blacks game had an added twist other than the Test match itself, having the Rieko Ioane feud with recently retired Johnny Sexton fresh in the minds of both camps.

Assistant coach Ryan says Rieko Ioane leading the haka was a “subtle” decision. 

“It was good wasn’t it, it was nice and subtle, he did it really well too actually, really proud moment for him. It was awesome, we talked to the boys and what it meant to him so it was really special.”

Looking towards next weekend’s match against France at Stade de France, Ryan believes the two wins against England and Ireland have bolstered his team’s ability to win tight contests.

“Last week we found a way, and I think it gave us a lot of confidence, it could have gone either way, winning can be whatever it looks like in every test, you just have to win and you gotta enjoy them and enjoy that moment.

“I know it gave us a lot of confidence that we found a way, and then we just hit this week humming we were really clear and what we needed to do and how we wanted to play, Scooter (Scott Barrett) is doing a great job of driving the boys around the park.”

Watch the exclusive reveal-all episode of Walk the Talk with Ardie Savea as he chats to Jim Hamilton about the RWC 2023 experience, life in Japan, playing for the All Blacks and what the future holds. Watch now for free on RugbyPass TV

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Comments

4 Comments
F
FW 10 days ago

Hehehehehe

B
Bull Shark 11 days ago

New Zealand are going to win the World Cup.


Unless they lose to France. Then France are going to win the World Cup. @KiwiSteve

d
d 11 days ago

I'd hesitate to say "superb form", this AB side still looks a little predictable and unimaginative on attack, which is why England's rush defence was so effective against them.


But that's 2 away tests I didn't expect us to win, so Razor has earned himself a lot of slack the way this side keeps improving. The positions have all but sorted themselves now, and once the teamwork starts to gel this side could get very good.

W
Willie 11 days ago

if you beat the number 1 team it is "superb form". Spend some time in Sth Africa if you think fancy is the only form of superb.

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JW 3 hours ago
'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Ok, managed to read the full article..

... New Zealand’s has only 14 and the professional season is all over within four months. In France, club governance is the responsibility of an independent organisation [the Ligue Nationale de Rugby or LNR] which is entirely separate from the host union [the Fédération Française de Rugby or FFR]. Down south New Zealand Rugby runs the provincial and the national game.

That is the National Provincial Championship, a competition of 14 representative union based teams run through the SH international window and only semi professional (paid only during it's running). It is run by NZR and goes for two and a half months.


Super Rugby is a competition involving 12 fully professional teams, of which 5 are of New Zealand eligibility, and another joint administered team of Pacific Island eligibility, with NZR involvement. It was a 18 week competition this year, so involved (randomly chosen I believe) extra return fixtures (2 or 3 home and away derbys), and is run by Super Rugby Pacific's own independent Board (or organisation). The teams may or may not be independently run and owned (note, this does not necessarily mean what you think of as 'privately owned').


LNR was setup by FFR and the French Government to administer the professional game in France. In New Zealand, the Players Association and Super Rugby franchises agreed last month to not setup their own governance structure for professional rugby and re-aligned themselves with New Zealand Rugby. They had been proposing to do something like the English model, I'm not sure how closely that would have been aligned to the French system but it did not sound like it would have French union executive representation on it like the LNR does.

In the shaky isles the professional pyramid tapers to a point with the almighty All Blacks. In France the feeling for country is no more important than the sense of fierce local identity spawned at myriad clubs concentrated in the southwest. Progress is achieved by a nonchalant shrug and the wide sweep of nuanced negotiation, rather than driven from the top by a single intense focus.

Yes, it is pretty much a 'representative' selection system at every level, but these union's are having to fight for their existence against the regime that is NZR, and are currently going through their own battle, just as France has recently as I understand it. A single focus, ala the French game, might not be the best outcome for rugby as a whole.


For pure theatre, it is a wonderful article so far. I prefer 'Ntamack New Zealand 2022' though.

The young Crusader still struggles to solve the puzzle posed by the shorter, more compact tight-heads at this level but he had no problem at all with Colombe.

It was interesting to listen to Manny during an interview on Maul or Nothing, he citied that after a bit of banter with the All Black's he no longer wanted one of their jersey's after the game. One of those talks was an eye to eye chat with Tamaiti Williams, there appear to be nothing between the lock and prop, just a lot of give and take. I thought TW angled in and caused Taylor to pop a few times, and that NZ were lucky to be rewarded.

f you have a forward of 6ft 8ins and 145kg, and he is not at all disturbed by a dysfunctional set-piece, you are in business.

He talked about the clarity of the leadership that helped alleviate any need for anxiety at the predicaments unfolding before him. The same cannot be said for New Zealand when they had 5 minutes left to retrieve a match winning penalty, I don't believe. Did the team in black have much of a plan at any point in the game? I don't really call an autonomous 10 vehicle they had as innovative. I think Razor needs to go back to the dealer and get a new game driver on that one.

Vaa’i is no match for his power on the ground. Even in reverse, Meafou is like a tractor motoring backwards in low gear, trampling all in its path.

Vaa'i actually stops him in his tracks. He gets what could have been a dubious 'tackle' on him?

A high-level offence will often try to identify and exploit big forwards who can be slower to reload, and therefore vulnerable to two quick plays run at them consecutively.

Yes he was just standing on his haunches wasn't he? He mentioned that in the interview, saying that not only did you just get up and back into the line to find the opposition was already set and running at you they also hit harder than anything he'd experienced in the Top 14. He was referring to New Zealands ultra-physical, burst-based Super style of course, which he was more than a bit surprised about. I don't blame him for being caught out.


He still sent the obstruction back to the repair yard though!

What wouldn’t the New Zealand rugby public give to see the likes of Mauvaka and Meafou up front..

Common now Nick, don't go there! Meafou showed his Toulouse shirt and promptly got his citizenship, New Zealand can't have him, surely?!?


As I have said before with these subjects, really enjoy your enthusiasm for their contribution on the field and I'd love to see more of their shapes running out for Vern Cotter and the like styled teams.

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