England miss golden opportunity to beat New Zealand on their own turf
The happiness shown on the New Zealand players' faces at the end of the game told the whole story. As time was running out, England had one last chance to set up a kick for a goal, but they were stopped by another penalty during a breakdown as George Furbank was left alone. This had been an issue for England throughout the game. The match was intense and it's difficult not to feel like England missed a great opportunity against a different All Blacks team led by a new coach and captain.
England has now gone 21 years without a win against the All Blacks in New Zealand. It was a disappointing game for Steve Borthwick's team, as they missed crucial opportunities, such as two penalties by Marcus Smith. The All Blacks were able to take control in areas where England usually excels, like the scrum and maul.
In the second part of the game, the energy from the first half wasn't as strong. The score was tied at 10-10, but England can still feel good about making the All Blacks change their aggressive playing style to a more defensive one, relying on kicking for territory. Damian McKenzie scored two penalties to help the All Blacks win after Immanuel Feyi-Waboso's try. McKenzie probably felt relieved after missing a chance to secure a win for his team with a penalty, giving England one final opportunity to snatch victory.
Borthwick's team is facing a tough challenge in the upcoming second Test at Eden Park, where New Zealand has not been defeated in 30 years. Despite this daunting prospect, England has shown that they have the potential to compete with New Zealand if they can eliminate mistakes and improve their setpiece play. Their aggressive defense and attacking flair have put pressure on New Zealand, and their resilience has been evident. However, the All Blacks are likely to come back stronger in the next match, with new head coach Scott Robertson pushing for a more ruthless attacking approach. This sets the stage for another exciting and competitive contest between the two teams.
Scoring timeline: First, the score was 5-0, then Reece scored a try to make it 5-5, followed by Itoje scoring a try to bring the score to 5-7. After that, Smith converted a try making the score 10-7, but Savea scored a try and tied it up 10-10 with Smith's penalty kick. Feyi-Waboso then scored a try making it 10-15, but McKenzie scored a penalty kick bringing it to 13-15. The final score was 16-15 after McKenzie scored another penalty kick.
New Zealand's lineup: Suliasi Perofeta started as the fullback, with Sevu Reece, Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett, and Mark Telea on the wings. Damian McKenzie and TJ Perenara were the halfbacks, while Finlay Christie came in at the 40th minute. In the forwards, Ethan de Groot, Codie Taylor, and Tyrel Lomax held the front row, with Scott Barrett as captain and Patrick Tuipulotu in the second row. Dalton Papali'i and Ardie Savea played in the back row. Alex Ndro Aumua replaced Taylor in the 63rd minute, while Fletcher Newell and Luke Jacobson came on for Lomax and Tuipulotu respectively in the second half. Tupou Vaa'I substituted Finau in the 57th minute.
England made some changes to their lineup, with G Furbank starting at fullback and I Feyi-Waboso on the wing. O Sleightholme replaced Feyi-Waboso later in the game. In the midfield, H Slade and O Lawrence partnered up, while T Freeman provided support on the other wing. At fly-half, M Smith started the game but was substituted by F Smith in the second half. A Mitchell and B Spencer shared the scrum-half duties throughout the match. In the forward pack, J Marler was replaced by F Baxter early on due to injury. J George started at hooker, later making way for T Dan. W Stuart held the position at tighthead prop until D Cole came on in the second half. The second row featured M Itoje and G Martin, while the back row consisted of C Cunningham-South and S Underhill, with T Curry and A Coles coming on as replacements. B Earl completed the forward pack. The referee for the match was N Amashukeli from Georgia.
