An inspired comeback in the second half, where they scored three tries, including a stunning 80m attempt by Will Jordan to conjure up thoughts of a miraculous turnaround, mitigated the damage somewhat. Still, the All Blacks had to regret a disastrous first half performance that sent them into a deep dark hole.
New Zealanders have largely gotten used to the comeback after the setback, but after last week’s first home defeat to Ireland, the All Blacks lost their first professional-era July series in Wellington.
Before the pitchforks and effigies emerge from the angry mob demanding coaching heads, it’s the height of ignorance not to first acknowledge Andy Farrell’s world-class Irish team that has expertly broken the All Blacks apart over the past two weeks.
The tourists fully deserve the recognition and acclaim that comes their way. This was a brutal five match tour. Ireland, on the other hand, emerged grinning from ear to ear.
For the All Blacks, however, the numbers don’t lie. They are in fact grim. Unwanted records are piling up. There were also no tickets for the All Blacks this week.
This is the first time in 24 years that the All Blacks have lost consecutive home tests – John Hart’s 1998 team is the last team to have endured such a series, and the first time since 1994 that they have lost a home series.
Four wins from their past nine tests strongly suggest that something is broken within this All Blacks team. Something has to change.
The wolves are at the door for Ian Foster, who now has a 16 out of 24 record, and his coaching team.
With a series of two tests in South Africa to follow, it doesn’t get any easier from here.
The arrival of Joe Schmidt for the Rugby Championship should help, but the New Zealand Rugby board is now under enormous pressure to make meaningful changes.
The mana, the legacy, of the All Blacks is tarnished with each passing defeat. This is only the sixth home defeat in history.
A 22-3 deficit at halftime to leave 38,000 fans in shock, they all seemed lost to the All Blacks.
With an inspiring performance on his home patch, Ardie Savea did his best to tie the All Blacks on his back and take them to some semblance of a comeback.
Every time he touched the ball, Savea got his legs pumping to deliver a rare punch — his attempt right after halftime, when he twirled and spun to hit the ball across the line, was just one example.
That was the late spark that the All Blacks desperately needed.
Ireland backed Andrew Porter’s yellow card in the 50th minute for an accidental head-on collision with Brodie Retallick and further invited the All Blacks to rejoin the game – and Akira Ioane was good enough to grab it by cutting through four defenders. storming to score a brilliant individual attempt.
From a seemingly unwinnable position, the All Blacks suddenly closed within five points. Johnny Sexton increased Ireland’s buffer, only before Jordan burst on a Savea inside ball and sprinted 80 yards to score a magical try.
Hope arose eternally, only to be crushed. Rob Herring’s line-out drive after 64 minutes finally broke the backlash.
Once again, the All Blacks started badly, with the basic errors following them from Dunedin.
Ireland showed their hand from the start by blocking a shot at goal and scoring from a lineout drive in the fifth minute. And the tourists were just warming up.
Irish fullback Hugo Keenan struck from a simple blindside switch that exploited an overlap and when Robbie Henshaw sauntered through a gaping hole just before half time, the Irish bench cheered. The All Blacks were pretty upset.
With four first-half lineouts alone, missed tackles and frequent processing errors, the All Blacks were often the architects of their own demise.
Ireland defended superbly, of course, but the All Blacks’ frustration soon set in as they struggled to generate the desired penetration or secure a fast ruckball.
Beauden Barrett was pinged for an unnecessary ruck clearance and tighthead prop Nepo Laulala fluffed the ball in an attempt to release from under his own sticks to suggest that the panic had really struck.
Peace returned in the second half, but it was too late for the All Blacks.
As losses mount, so do the deafening calls for change.
Ireland 32 (Josh van der Flier, Hugo Keenan, Robbie Henshaw, Rob Herring tries; Johnny Sexton 3 cons, 2 pens)
All blacks 22 (Ardie Savea, Akira Ioane, Will Jordan tries; Jordie Barrett 2 cons, pen)
HT: 22-3