New Zealand beat Australia 50-19 in the first test of the Bledislow Cup at Eden Park in Auckland. New Zealand retained the trophy for another year and extended their winning streak against Australia to 12 matches. The New Zealanders have held the cup uninterrupted since 2003.
The Wallabies started strongly and took the lead in the seventh minute through a try from Tom Wright, with Ryan Lonergan adding the goal to make it 7-0. The hosts responded with tries from Peter Lakai and Tupou Waai. Damien McKenzie converted a penalty in the 32nd minute before Australia captain Harry Wilson scored just before the break. At half-time, the All Blacks led 17-14.
Five tries for New Zealand after the break
The gap widened eight minutes into the second half when Kam Roygaard scored a try. He was followed by goals from captain Cody Taylor, Leroy Carter and Josh Moorby. Will Jordan made the final score with the last try of the match, scored just before the buzzer. Australia got a second try through Josh Nasser in the 76th minute, but failed to add points from the conversion.
The All Blacks scored a total of seven tries, and MacKenzie finished the match with six conversions and one penalty. The victory is New Zealand's 25th consecutive against Australia at “Eden Park“. For the Wallabies, the defeat snapped a six-match unbeaten run and ended Les Keys' successful start as coach.
Wilson: We didn't win the big moments
Australia captain Harry Wilson told Nine that the performance was a step back for the team.
“Tonight was probably a step back for us because we didn't win the big moments. When you give the All Blacks a little space and the ball, it's hard to get it back. We'll do some serious analysis and come back a lot better next week,“ said Wilson.Tom Wright also cited ball possession errors as a reason for the heavy defeat. "They were very good at punishing us and we gave them the ball back in a few situations," he said.
Adding to Australia's problems was the injury to centre Len Ikitau, who left the field in the first half after failing a concussion test. The two teams will meet again on October 17 at Stadium Australia in Sydney.
Sources: abc.net.au