Julian Savea: First All Black to get a hat-trick against Ireland
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All Blacks wing Julian Savea scored a hat-trick on debut to help the world champions to a comprehensive 42-10 win over Ireland at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday.
The talented speedster crossed twice in the first half and again after the break to cap a memorable night in his first Test outing for New Zealand, as the home side opened their 2012 account with a bang.
The win also saw the All Blacks extend their winning run at Eden Park to 28 Tests, dating back to 1994.
The visitors were outscored five tries to one, and based on this quality performance from the hosts, it looks like Ireland will have to wait a little longer for that elusive victory over the men in black.
Whilst the scoreline resembles one-way traffic, it took a while for New Zealand to click into a gear as the Irish threatened to give the home side a run for their money early on - Rob Kearney in particular impressing with ball in hand.
But with the scores level 3-3 after fly-halves Dan Carter and Jonathan Sexton traded penalties between them, the All Blacks started to find some rhythm.
Carter, who produced a near flawless display from the tee, added two more penalties from 50m out to stretch his side's lead to 9-3 before Savea struck with his first try in the 25th minute and New Zealand never looked back.
Ireland kicked away possession, not for the first time, and Zac Guildford got away with a fumble that saw the ball roll sideways. From there, the All Blacks were able to send it wide to Conrad Smith, who switched with Sonny Bill Williams. The inside centre made one of his trademark one-hand offloads to Carter and he sent Savea away for his first Test try.
Carter converted from bang in front, and the writing was on the wall for Ireland as Savea was once again the man of the moment after crossing over out wide for try number two just before half-time.
Carter was on target once again with the touchline conversion to give the All Blacks a deserved 23-3 lead at half-time, leaving Ireland with a hill to climb after the break.
The hill became a mountain after Savea was celebrating his hat-trick three minutes into the second half. The Hurricanes flyer had Israel Dagg to thank after the full-back drew in the cover defence - following some good interplay between Conrad Smith and Kieran Read in midfield - to put Savea over in the corner.
Carter raised the flags to make it 30-3 and the result was all but sealed. That was until the Irish finally hit back through a try by Fergus McFadden who, after a turnover, chased a kick ahead from Sexton and beat Richie McCaw to the ball for a seven-pointer.
With Ireland now in double figures, the green army of supporters were given a glimmer of hope. However, it wouldn't last long as normal activity resumed shortly after when Read broke away from the back of a 5m scrum and gave the try-scoring pass to replacement Adam Thomson.
Both teams rang the changes with 20 minutes remaining and Ireland weathered another spell of pressure from the home team and looked to have clawed themselves back into a respectable position when McFadden outsprinted Dagg 80 metres to score under the posts. But referee Nigel Owens had already called back play for an Irish offside.
There was further reason for Irish hearts to flutter in the final minutes as loosehead prop Cian Healy was injured and replaced by hooker Sean Cronin.
Conrad Smith was then rewarded for a fantastic performance when he dived over to the right of the posts after a slick pass from replacement Aaron Cruden. Carter added the extras to make it a 32-point buffer and give the Irish plenty to ponder ahead of next week's second Test in Christchurch.
Man of the match: For Ireland, Sean O'Brien and Rory Best were the pick of the forwards while Rob Kearney was a pillar of strength at the back. New Zealand number eight Kieran Read proved why he's rated the best in his position, while Carter was his influential self at 10 - finishing with a match haul of 17 points. Scrum-half Aaron Smith produced an outstanding debut with his rapid service keeping the backline moving, but wing Julian Savea gets our vote. A constant threat out wide, the 21-year-old made history by becoming the first All Black to get a hat-trick against Ireland in only his first Test appearance.
Moment of the match: Even though there were six tries scored in all, we've opted for Savea's bone-crunching hit on Kearney that proved New Zealand's hat-trick hero is no slouch on defence either.
Villain of the match: No cards, but the Irish got out of jail a few times when holding back All Black players on the attack.
The scorers:
For New Zealand:
Tries: Savea 3, Thomson, C Smith
Cons: Carter 4
Pens: Carter 3
For Ireland:
Try: McFadden
Pen: Sexton
New Zealand: 15 Israel Dagg, 14 Zac Guildford, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Victor Vito, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Andrew Hore, 1 Tony Woodcock.
Replacements: 16 Hika Elliot, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Ali Williams, 19 Adam Thomson, 20 Piri Weepu, 21 Aaron Cruden, 22 Ben Smith.
Ireland: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Fergus McFadden, 13 Brian O'Driscoll (c), 12 Keith Earls, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Sean O'Brien, 6 Peter O'Mahony, 5 Donnacha Ryan, 4 Dan Touhy, 3 Declan Fitzpatrick, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements: 16 Sean Cronin, 17 Ronan Loughney, 18 Donncha O'Callaghan, 19 Kevin McLaughlin, 20 Eoin Reddan, 21 Ronan O'Gara, 22 Darren Cave.
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Comments
kiwikev says...
@ amaboko
Thanks for the laugh; that is one of the funniest posts I have ever read on this, or any other, forum!
Posted 05:08 10th June 2012
safehands says...
@Planet Rugby......when are you gonna ban rascist clowns like BokAvenger?
He is clearly upset that his beloved Boks are a country mile behind the mighty All Blacks....but you simply cannot allow the rascist and vitriotic bile that he spews to continue unchecked on just about every single thread he comments on, week in week out.
Allowing him and other posters to rant on with terms such as 'All Gorillas', All Pacific' etc is blatant rascim and leaves a poor taste in the mouth of reasonable rugby lovers, both South African and Kiwi. This type of comment has nothing to do with rugby but typifies the mentality of a minority of idiotic South Africans. I CAN say this as my wife of 14 years is South African and fortunately her side of the family do not represent the rascist views shared by the likes of BokAvenger!!
Everybody is entitled to voice an opinion and even bloody minded patriosm above and beyond, but the rascist insinuations and attacks on our culture are not acceptable. If he and others think we are favoured or are the biggest bunch of cheaters out there, who cares? But to couple those ridiculous sentiments with rascist namecalling is not on and it is up to PR to remove these posters asap.
I'm sure if posts were put up relating to SA's somewhat dubious past.....there would be an outcry of epic proportions!? This is a rugby website for rugby lovers to enjoy a bit of banter with fellow rugby lovers from all nations....not put up with RASCISM!!!
Posted 04:55 10th June 2012
hayj05 says...
@BokAvenger - Newsflash Bokavenger, the AB's side did suffer from food poisoning.
You could clearly see players spewing on the sidelines & management deemed that half the starting line-up wasn't match fit but being the WC final they were never going to miss it. Also a South African who was previously a bodyguard for Mandela but had been watching the AB's for the tournament, attests to the AB's being sick.
Walking In your shoes, I know that it would be very hard to accept considering it happened in your country & who knows what the result might of been if the AB's hadn't suffered from food poisoning, the Springboks still may have won so this has got nothing to do with an excuse for losing.
"There is no way that you can definatively say that the AB's were poisoned on purpose."
But coincidences like;
- The fact that they were playing the hosts in the final
- The fact that it happened 2 days out from the event
- The fact that they got moved from the hotel restaurant where they had been eating for the entire tournament to a seperate room to eat
- And the fact that you would think a hotel hosting Rugby teams for a WC would have very high food hygiene standards
Means that you can't rule out the possibility. This is where we differentiate, you accuse the IRB & AB's of cheating but lack any real evidence. I look at the facts but still maintain an innocent until proven guilty verdict.
And gold watches? I'm pretty sure that was the French.
Posted 03:41 10th June 2012
sandal says...
@ruckingkiwi and KiwiLad
Lol. Yes, why does BokAvenger watch New Zealand so much?
Might I suggest, however, that much as BokA might amuse you, you join in the boycott that some of us are observing against him. If we ignore him, then he will suffocate without the oxygen of our attention.
Or, better still, he might pull his head in and start saying something sensible.
Posted 03:31 10th June 2012
sandal says...
Regards to the many Irish fans here who are so gracious in defeat.
Well, I have to say I did not expect that scoreline or those performances. I did expect that on a wet night the Irish halves would kick much better to expose the frailties of New Zealand's back three. (Not saying that it won't happen yet.)
Hail to Julian Savea -- a fine game (the dropped kick-off excepted). And hail, too, to Israel Dagg. Sweet, sweet running and drawing.
Dan Carter had one of his best games in an All Black jersey -- some achievement after his injury and lay-off.
If the ref had remembered to take his yellow cards on to the field the margin might have been a lot greater. Never mind the jersey pulling (an old, old trait), and yellow cards aside, many a ref would have awarded a penalty try when two Irish backs got themselves SEVERAL YARDS offside at a scrum under their posts. Unless the halfback feints to pass (and there was no such feint) such a thing at a set piece has to be deliberate.
The two packs, and perhaps the ref too, produced a good night of scrummaging. If only it always went that smoothly.
Posted 02:51 10th June 2012
MacTavish says...
BokAvenger says...
NZ should remove that Adidas logo on their jerseys and just replace it with the IRB's
That fact that this post even made it to the forum says more about the PR Editor than we already know about BokAvenger. Dear Editor, draw a line and stop the stiring by putting this Bull Sh!t on your site!!! There is free speach, and then there is that crap. Grow some balls.
Posted 02:47 10th June 2012
hayj05 says...
@yamahakiwi - Nice summary.
Posted 02:35 10th June 2012
Ripzy007 says...
@BAV why the eff do you bother commenting on the ABs when you have your Boks to worry about...its hard for you to understand that we do not like that racist, one-eye and biassed shit you come up with all the time
Posted 02:34 10th June 2012
hayj05 says...
@Moosh - To add on to my comment. I reckon that you should watch for teams that start establishing periods of dominance. The longer the dominance the more it comes into play.
The AB's have been the premier Rugby nation for the most part of 100 years, so it just builds up more & more.
Same with Manchester united, been really dominant for the last 20 years, the same has happened to them.
Etc. Leinster have now established a good run in European Rugby. If they continue winning games & titles just watch for more & more people start putting it down to the ref.
Quick google search finds,
"Seen this before, wonderful how Leinster get the NZ treatment by refs."
"Leinster's ref Poite needed only the slightest reason to favour...."
Thinking about it more... calls in favour of the winning side get noticed by the losing sides/losing fans. It's that looking for people to blame for failure mentality & this also helps to amplify the perception of favourable calls for a side that wins a lot.
Whereas the winning side/fans couldn't care less about how many favourable calls the losing side recieved because they're too busy celebrating success. Which in reverse amplifies the perception of no favourable calls for a side that loses a lot.
Posted 02:31 10th June 2012
BillyMutt2 says...
Poor Bok just doesn't seem to be able to stop digging himself into an ever deeper hole. His blatant and complete ignorance about rugby in general must be at the root of his malicious discontent. Obviously never played the game. Just stop reacting to his childish rambling, maybe then he'll go away.
Awesome victory to the All Blacks. Pure class befitting the best rugby team in the world.
Posted 02:22 10th June 2012
startledwombat says...
It's easy to get into a lull when you are twenty-five points up and the rhythms do change when the substitutes come on, but I thought that Weepu was revealed to be merely competent out there by comparison. Thompson however hates being a bench-warmer.
Posted 01:47 10th June 2012
hayj05 says...
@Moosh - "it wasn't a factor today but you have to admit that the ABs do sometimes seem to be subject to a different set of rules when it comes to what constitutes lying on the wrong side of the ruck. As in, when other teams do it, they tend to be penalised. When the ABs do it, they tend not to be. (RWC final 2011 the best recent example). They are undoubtedly the best team in the world but it rankles to see them also get favourable decisions. "
Ummmm... No I don't. I'll give you a very simply reason why it appears this way. The AB's win a lot.... Here by making them the target of scrutiny. Like I've said before, pretty much the opposite happened to the AB's in the 07 quarter final. Wayne Barnes refrained from making a number of call on infringements in the last 15 mins or so, official report put the number at 20 or something like that.
But did you hear anyone outside of NZ complaining about the ref? No... everyone praised the French despite the AB's playing better.
Why is that? Because with the AB's being the dominant side of World Rugby, everybody loves seeing them lose.
So when it's the opposite & some poor reffing takes away a chance of the AB's losing.... Everybody kicks up a fuss & some people even go as far as blaming it on the AB's when in reality they had nothing to do with it. All because they are baying for blood.
Why would the AB's get advantages from neutral refs?
Sure you can disagree with me & say I'm speaking a lot of hogwash & there's not much I can say because we're always going to have our own opinions but I could pull out examples of this phenomena in many sports. New England Patriots & Manchester United quickly spring to mind as targeted teams.
Every team has their fair share of favourable & unfavourable calls.
Posted 01:45 10th June 2012
NeBear says...
Good start from the ABs against a fairly average Irish side. Agree with Richie in the post match interview about the ABs needing to step it up in game 2 - just need to eliminate silly errors, like Aaron Smith being pinged not putting the ball straight into the scum and Richie's knock on at the start of the second half. The Irish were impressive at the breakdowns in the first half but Brian OD's plan to slow down AB ruck ball rarely happened. Loved Savea's hit on Rob Kearney and my goodness, what a brilliant trio of tries - Not quite Lomu-like but a physically imposing specimen that is difficult to stop nonetheless
Brilliant display of kicking from DC - just a class player - pity he didn't score at the end to extend the margin . Loving Aaron Smith at half back with his lightening quick pass, darting runs and decision making, although I think Carter got a bit peeved in the first half when Smith chose to attack the blindside with Sam Whitelock rather than igniting the back-line
Think the general consensus is for the Irish to stop kicking away possession in order to keep the margin tighter next week - I must admit, Brian OD looked like a shadow of the player he used to be - although he did make a couple of good offloads in general play.
Posted 01:30 10th June 2012
lacroix says...
@yamahakiwi - i agree - mccaw was poor and time to face the music building for 2015.
@moosh- its true and it rankles (great underused word-thank you for reminding me of that one) ...but teams with momentum do get the rub of the green and refs advantage in so many situations...as you say today it didnt affect the result, and in fact it could have been far worse for ireland (who were out of their depth).
@mew200 calm down and relax...i'm joking, the right team won the world cup, no doubt ....but joubert was dreadful for the RWC final and as today shows, still is a very poor ref.
great to see NZ play some rugby today- we didnt see them do that in the RWC final when les bleus outclassed them 1 to 22 ;)
(someone pass mew 2000 some valium quick !)
Posted 01:04 10th June 2012
isthatrightref says...
Fitzpatrick stood up better than I expected - or maybe Woodcock was missing the extra grunt formerly provided by Thorn? I'm increasingly worried by Richie's lack of pace esp having just watched Pocock - time to give him a crack at 6 & get a new 7 e.g. Cane or Todd for the NZ-haters to hate...
Positives were of course DC who looks back to somewhere near his pre-RWC form, the midfield & the back 3 - Hansen's got a few headaches when Jane & Kahui are fit again, as do the wobblies & boks come 4N time - while Read was simply immense, rapidly becoming indispensible.
Ireland I thought kicked too much as NH sides seem wont to do, if you're gonna do that then you've gotta chase, guys! AB have a history of being less dominant in the 2nd after a big win in the 1st so maybe a closer result in Cheechee but look out in the 3rd & have your record books handy, you may need 'em!
Posted 00:40 10th June 2012
Trinats2 says...
Good win NZ, too much class out wide.
Well done Sevea 3 try debutant, and he even knew some of the words of the nation anthem (the Kiwi one)
yamahakiwi:
"thought he shaded McCaw" Very funny, what are your tour dates for your stand up? McCaw kept Ireland in the game !
Posted 00:38 10th June 2012
hellovanite says...
Hey Ritche McCaw and Kieran Reid both have Irish names so that's something lol
Posted 00:36 10th June 2012
kiwieire02 says...
I think Shane Horgan summed up the All Blacks perfectly on sky's rugby club last week when he said if you look at the ABs and how they play, they don't have these amazing setplays like aus or flair like the french(used to anyway) or a monstrous pack like boks,poms etc, they play simple rugby using the basics you are taught as a school boy but they do them perfectly and clinically thats why they are what they are.
Posted 23:35 09th June 2012
porridge_time says...
Ireland did not actually do anything wrong as such, they just could not cope with the pace and tempo that the AB's play the game.
Posted 22:55 09th June 2012
yamahakiwi says...
Pretty good start for the ABs. They looked well-oiled compared to the usual rusty first test efforts we normally get. Can't believe the geezer that gave them 6/10 expecting perfection in the first test of the year. Get real mate!
Bok Avenger must be half-blind because he doesn't know the difference between sideways and forwards - just to make it clear for you BA, the ball went sideways. from Guildford before Savea scored the first try. And surprise, surprise we get a lecture about POB and how the IRB love NZ. But gee, not a whisper about the blatant jersey-pulling of supporting AB backs that stopped two AB tries. The first should've been a penalty try but didn't matter cos Thompson went over a couple of minutes later. The second warranted a yellow card as it was so blatant and wasn't the first time Ireland had been penalised for that foul. It was good to see Conrad Smith get that deserved try after being held back before.
As for the Irish, too much aimless kicking and no challenging the gainline from 9 or 10 just makes it easy for opposition backs and loosies to defend. Thought Best had an excellent game bar a couple of wobbly throws for Ireland. Kearney made a couple of try saving tackles in the corner but also was guilty, as were all of the back three of making poor defensive choices that made things easy for Savea. Sean O'Brien's workrate was huge as usual and he got some good turnovers. Agree that even as a Kiwi I thought he shaded McCaw who's slowing down is also hurting our support a bit. And before other Kiwis bitch at me - we all know there have been tries missed in the last year because the continuity wasn't quite there and a faster linking 7 would've been there to keep the attack going. It happened twice last night again. This is a great player but I hope Hansen doesn't keep him in so long that it starts to impact on building the team for 2015.
Posted 22:31 09th June 2012