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Man of the Match Ardie Savea reacts to All Blacks overcoming two yellow cards
By Ned Lester
In a quarter-final for the ages, the All Blacks have prevailed to book a spot in the semi-finals at the Rugby World Cup.
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Ireland’s 17-game winning run came to a brutal end on a monumental night in Paris, where 151-cap All Black veteran Sam Whitelock put a full stop on the match with a breakdown turnover deep into extra time.
The match swung back and forth but for all of Ireland’s efforts, New Zealand led throughout.
Man of the Match was New Zealand’s influential No 8 Ardie Savea, who contributed a try along with a team-high in carries, linebreaks and turnovers won.
He reflected on the superb performance postmatch.
“There was a lot riding on this week,” he said. “It was one of those test matches that was a battle.
“To go out there and play against a world-class Irish squad, we gave the fans what they wanted. A big testament to this Irish team. They have set the standard this whole year. I just want to send love to them. I am just so proud of my boys.”
The All Blacks were down to 14 men twice in the match, with Aaron Smith spending time on the sideline for a deliberate knockdown and Codie Taylor sin-binned for collapsing a maul which led to a penalty try in the 63rd minute.
Smith’s 10 minutes also saw te All Blacks concede a try, that time through a solo effort by his opposite Jamison Gibson-Park who closed the gap to 17-18 just moments before the halftime break.
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Surrendering points but not the lead during both yellow cards, New Zealand maintained control of the match through their resilient defence and game management.
“To be honest, I kind of didn’t notice,” Savea said of the effort when down a man. “We just had to dig deep and we got through in the end.”
Captain Sam Cane would have also received votes for Man of the Match, chewing through a game-high 21 tackles and equalling Savea’s tally for turnovers.
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“We don’t want to be playing with 14 men but we had to twice there,” he said. “The boys dug a bit deeper.
“The defence was outstanding tonight. We were able to hold them out for long periods and I think ultimately that’s what won it for us.
“I’m super-stoked. I want to thank all our supporters. There are plenty here and all the ones who are back home, it means a lot. I can’t wait to get stuck into another week.”
Knockout
11 - 12
Final
6 - 44
SF1
15 - 16
SF2
17 - 29
QF1
24 - 28
QF2
30 - 24
QF3
28 - 29
QF4
That next week will see the team face familiar Rugby Championship rivals Argentina, another match that promises bruising physicality.
“There will be some tired bodies. The first couple of days will be about getting our recovery and filling up the tank again. We are looking forward to it and I can’t wait.”
What impressed me most about NZs defence was how they stuck to their high-risk, high-reward defensive system. Much maligned (here on this website by some know-it-alls), It absolutely came up trumps and allowed the ABs to make turnovers at wide where they can use them. Wayne ‘The Professor” Smith was a diehard proponent of the system. It leaks tries for sure - but it also allows the ABs to attack from a position on the field and with the opposition misaligned.
But what a game! ABs were written off by everyone (myself included to a certain extent). And it was dead even to down to the wire.
The officiating was poor though one has to say. Not so much the YCs (Smith’s was very, very harsh). But there were far too many forward passes and far too many offsides at ruck that went unnoticed. Not really what one expects from the world’s #1 ref.
I saw an interview with Ronan O’Gara before the game where he said if the ABs tighten up their defense, they could take Ireland. Voila, the AB’s put in a staunch defensive effort - and especially in the final few minutes and take the game. “Fine margins” and all that but the AB speed and brilliance combined with that defense will have to be repeated if they are to continue at this RWC. Good to see better discernment / judgement in the option taking for holding onto the ball and taking it up the middle, going wide, small chips and longer kicks.