New Zealand edge France 34-32 in nine-try thriller to open Nations Championship
New Zealand survived a late French surge to win 34-32 in Christchurch, launching the inaugural Nations Championship with a nine-try spectacle in Dave Rennie's first match as head coach.
A breathless start in Christchurch
The inaugural Nations Championship kicked off with a nine-try thriller as New Zealand edged France 34-32 at One New Zealand Stadium. France stunned the home crowd when Damian Penaud crossed inside two minutes, and All Blacks fly-half Ruben Love was sin-binned for a high tackle in the build-up. Even a man down, New Zealand replied through Will Jordan in the eighth minute, and once back to full strength, Peter Lakai gave them a 12-10 lead. The first half ended with Cam Roigard sniping over for a 19-13 advantage.
- Damian Penaud scores opening try for France
- Will Jordan replies for New Zealand
- Peter Lakai gives New Zealand the lead
- Cam Roigard extends lead before half-time
- Antoine Hastoy scores for France
- Roigard grabs his second try
- Theo Attissogbe keeps France in touch
- Jordan's second try gives New Zealand breathing space
- Matthieu Jalibert sets up tense finish
France started the second half faster, with Antoine Hastoy scoring after a basketball-style pass from Theo Attissogbe. Roigard grabbed his second moments later, but Attissogbe struck back to keep the contest tight. Jordan's second try, his 47th in Tests, gave New Zealand breathing space at 34-25 with nine minutes left. Matthieu Jalibert crashed over in the 78th minute to set up a tense finish, but France kicked away possession after the restart and the All Blacks held on.
Tournament launch
The Nations Championship pits the Six Nations sides against the southern hemisphere's Rugby Championship teams plus invited nations Fiji and Japan. Each team plays six cross-hemisphere matches, three in July and three in November, with results determining a league table within each hemisphere. The campaign culminates in a 'Finals Weekend' at Twickenham in late November, where the top-ranked sides meet for the title, and a parallel Ryder Cup-style hemisphere competition awards points for each playoff victory.
What they said
It was tough. The French were quality tonight, when we had the ball in our hands, we were dangerous.
Savea, the All Blacks captain, admitted his side had been given a severe test by an under-strength France missing players from Top 14 finalists Toulouse and Montpellier, as well as injured scrum-half Antoine Dupont.
What's next
New Zealand host Italy next weekend, while France travel to face Australia. The opening round also features South Africa against England in Johannesburg and Argentina versus Scotland. The tournament runs through July and November, with the final set for Twickenham.
