- Early second halfJosh Moorby scores his second try
- 66th minuteFilipo Daugunu scores Australia's third try
- Full timeNew Zealand win 43-21
A first-half collapse in Sydney
The All Blacks beat the Wallabies 43-21 at Stadium Australia on Saturday, 17 October, extending their winning run over Australia to 13 Tests. New Zealand scored six tries before half-time and led 36-7 at the break. Australia trailed 22-0 after the first 26 minutes, when Josh Moorby, Beauden Barrett, Peter Lakai and Rieko Ioane all crossed for the visitors. Declan Meredith's pass in the tackle sent Jeremy Williams over for Australia's first try just before the half-hour mark. The lock was sin-binned two minutes later, and Wallace Sititi made the extra man count with New Zealand's fifth try.
Missed tackles and lost possession
At half-time New Zealand had 18 line breaks to Australia's one, and the Wallabies had missed 21 tackles to New Zealand's single miss. Australia also conceded eight turnovers to New Zealand's two. The Wallabies' attack botched four final-pass options in the first 10 minutes, and kickoffs out on the full gave the visitors more ball.
- New Zealand tries
- 6
- Australia tries
- 1
- New Zealand line breaks
- 18
- Australia line breaks
- 1
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Kiss was scathing about the first half and the team's discipline in defence.
“It's just not acceptable what was put out there.”
He said the side needed to think harder about what it meant to turn up in the first half and stop the errors that cost them.
The captain's verdict
Wallabies captain Harry Wilson told Channel Nine that the performance was not good enough for the group. He said the side had shown grit in the second half but that it came too late.
“It's not good enough for this group, we've got to be a lot better.”
Two second-half tries, from Tom Wright and Filipo Daugunu, the latter in the 66th minute, reduced the margin but did not change the result. Daugunu's try came from a clever line dropout by Wright.
Absences and injuries
Jordie Barrett was ruled out before kickoff with a calf injury, and Quinn Tupaea left the field with a concussion early in the match. Ardie Savea, Ruben Love and Richie Mo'unga were also absent, so the All Blacks fielded what sources described as an understrength side. Even without those players, New Zealand kept their accuracy and finishing throughout the first 40 minutes. Josh Moorby scored a second try after the restart when a feigned overhead pass fooled Max Jorgensen and Ryan Lonergan.
Season context and the World Cup
Australia host next year's World Cup, and the defeat has raised questions about their standing before that tournament. Last week in Auckland New Zealand won 50-19, and the Wallabies had beaten Hong Kong in the first game of the series. Australia's defeat of South Africa last month had left them unbeaten after six Tests, but the two heavy losses in a week have undone that early momentum. The next chance to respond will come when Australia face the World Cup pool opponents, and the coaching group must fix the first-half errors that defined this series.