Thank you for joining me for this absolute thriller of a Test match. In the end New Zealand just had that extra fire power from the bench to teeter the game in their favour to win the Test series 2-0. England are building as a team but they will want the results that come with it to start building too. Make sure you keep up to date with the other international fixtures today on our rugby page but you can recap the England action below. Have a great day:
Here are the closing minutes if you haven’t been able to watch them:
FULL TIME!
— Sky Sports Rugby Union (@SkySportsRugby) July 13, 2024
Late TMO drama denies England and New Zealand secure back-to-back victories 🤝 pic.twitter.com/CcMMdMou8h
There has also been a lot of discussion around a knock on that occurred when England looked to attack while 17-13 up. It was given as a penalty only but some are saying it should have been looked at for a potential sin bin.
another huge moment https://t.co/VL2n7CKrFj
— Charlie Morgan (@CharlieFelix) July 13, 2024
England’s tour is now over, they beat Japan before falling to two defeats at the hands of New Zealand. The All Blacks summer action continues next week though when they face Fiji.
Wales take on Australia in this bumper rugby day and you can follow all of the action here:
Matthew Hobbs has emailed and had his say on the obstruction call that ended the game:
Beauden Barrett was absolutely brilliant off the bench but the ending will bite England for some time.
Lawrence and George never change their bins therefore it’s not possible for Lawrence to have caused an obstruction.
There was also a strong argument that the perfectly legal maul was collapsed by Barrett and that there was a clear side entry by New Zealand into the same maul.
On a positive note, England’s identity is becoming much clearer under Steve Borthwick. Next year’s Six Nations could be a cracker.
I think New Zealand collapsed the maul legally but it is the obstruction call that some may disagree with. There, of course, is no guarantee that England would have been able to create a try-scoring opportunity after that but I don’t think New Zealand should have had that last penalty. But that’s sport and you have to respect the referee.
England head coach Steve Borthwick told Sky: “I think the team is progressing, we have work to do to get where we want to be but we are moving forward. If you look at the game and you look at the two teams and you can’t buy experience.”
Marcus Smith told Sky Sports: “I want to say firstly all credit to the boys, this last five weeks I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know these boys on and off the field. For me it is the small moments, Eden Park is a historic place. We had a lot of belief this week we could go something special… When they are ahead they are a very successful team and so it is hard to wrestle momentum back.”
Does Beauden Barrett start next week against Fiji? I don’t think he will as I think Scott Robertson will want to give Stephen Perofeta more game time but he has more than proved to be the pivotal factor in this All Blacks team.
New Zealand captain Scott Barrett said: “I think Test matches challenge your character. We had to dig deep there. I think it is adapting in game, what works at the start doesn’t work at the end. I guess you are never comfortable in this environment and we are looking to build on these performances.” The trophy has been lifted and New Zealand’s record remain in place.
There is a trophy presentation for the Test series. England captain Jamie George speaks first: “I spoke earlier in the week about the journey this team has been on, we are a significantly different team. We will welcome them back to Twickenham later on this year. I love New Zealand, it is an incredible country to come and tour. Huge congratulations to the All Blacks, a big congrats to Scott.”
England’s Maro Itoje, who had a great game despite giving away a few penalties, told Sky Sports: “The second half we weren’t as accurate as we wanted to be, we gave away a few too many penalties. We gave them easy points and territory. I think we weren’t accurate, we gave their backfield opportunities. It’s tough, I think we have showed some improvements but not good enough today.”
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England will feel hard done by there, if the obstruction penalty is not given there would be a goal line drop out and England may have had another opportunity to level the game. But Berry saw Lawrence’s bind with George as obstruction and so New Zealand win.
The tide was firmly turned when Beauden Barrett came on. He was absolutely heroic, not only in attack but in defence. He was their spark and got underneath the ball at the end as George looked to pounce. Fletcher Newell was also impressive.
Full time: New Zealand 24-17 England
The Eden Park record remains.
81 min: Berry tells George he “doesn’t want to argue about it”, the referee views it as a penalty to New Zealand with Lawrence obstructing. George looks fuming.
81 min: They check the maul collapse and they have a look to see if Lawrence is the cause or if it is the All Blacks who change their binds? You can hear George petitioning the referee but the maul is successfully defended by New Zealand according to the TMO. But Berry wants another look, “to get it right”.
81 min: Line-out is good. They go for a maul. The backs pile in and they march to the line. They think they are over but it is held up but B Barrett. The officials will make sure it wasn’t grounded and on how the maul was collapsed.
80 min: England have a penalty advantage as they come forward again which we come back to. They go to the corner, can England level this game?
79 min: The line-out is good and they opt to go through the hands instead of the maul. The breakdown work from the hosts is impeccable and they turn it over, that is absolutely massive.
78 min: England’s line-out is good and if it isn’t now it might not happen. Sleightholme is now on and makes a storming run, in the attack Curry is tackled off the ball and so F Smith kicks to the corner. Oh my, this could get tasty.
77 min: England have to be the next to score and B Barrett clears to give the visitors possession. Slade opts to the boot and McKenzie picks it up to kick clear – maybe the wrong option from Slade.
PENALTY! New Zealand 24-17 England (McKenzie, 75)
It’s good and it’s a mountain for England to climb now.
75 min: The line-out is taken cleanly by New Zealand and then they win a penalty as Itoje makes contact in the air – the third penalty from the Saracens player now. New Zealand point to the sticks.
74 min: The referee calls time off as the scrum collapses, he has moved the scrum over as all the players are slipping on the grass. Time back on and New Zealand win the scrum penalty as the hosts start to turn the screw here.
73 min: The breakdown has been a card in New Zealand’s hand all match but this time it is England who play it and they get a penalty. The visitors have a scrum but the referee resets and has a word with both front rows.
71 min: Baxter is off for England with Rodd on. Itoje’s tackle is too high and New Zealand have the penalty, they kick up to halfway. I cannot overstate just how critical B Barrett’s introduction has been. Steward is off for a HIA here, that call made by medical officials looking on and so M Smith is back on the pitch.
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PENALTY! New Zealand 21-17 England (McKenzie, 69)
The kick is good and now it is England with the work to do.
69 min: The screams from the crowd are deafening, Eden Park is pulsing and it erupts even further with a breakdown penalty for the All Blacks. I believe they are pointing to the sticks.
67 min: So England have another chance to hit back as their line-out functions once more. Lawrence looks to chip through but it is B Barrett again who picks up, kicks on and is just millimetres from picking it up. It gives the All Blacks another boost, they look lethal right now.
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66 min: England’s line-out is good and they look to put themselves ahead again in this absolute thriller. F Smith, who is now on for M Smith, puts a kick through but it is picked up perfectly by B Barrett who clears.
64 min: B Barrett’s reaction to being benched by new head coach Scott Robertson has been the exact one you would want from a top player. Just absolutely electric when given his minutes. New Zealand are really in the ascendency here but then B Barrett puts a step wrong with a kick out on the full. What a game.
TRY! New Zealand 18-17 England (Tele'a, 61)
Oh wow.
The ball comes to B Barrett who makes incredible metres, he has been the exact spark the All Blacks needed, and he offloads to Tele’a who is over. A huge moment in this close encounter. McKenzie misses the conversion.
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61 min: George apologises as he throws before the referee calls time on. We reset and George goes short to win the set piece, Mitchell clears a few phases later.
60 min: B Barrett is on now and he immediately makes an impact with a chop tackle on Steward giving them attacking momentum. B Barrett pops a grubber kick in and it rolls just a few metres from their try line, the experienced back giving his side the boost they needed.
59 min: J Barrett does so well under the high ball and Ratima’s exit is good – New Zealand are doing well to prevent England adding to the scoreboard as they have had all of the momentum in this second half.
58 min: England win a penalty at the scrum, the set pieces are topsy turvy now! Smith kicks to the corner and my word he squeezes all the possible space from it. It puts pressure on New Zealand’s line-out but England waste the opportunity by giving away a penalty, J Barrett clears.
56 min: This time it is England’s turn to have a line-out issue with New Zealand coming away with it but it’s intercepted, Tele’a thinks he has nabbed it right back but the referee blows up for an earlier pen. Eden Park had erupted then thinking the winger was going to run clear.
55 min: New Zealand’s line-out is disrupted yet again, Taylor is having a nightmare at the set piece, but they do manage to retain the ball and clear.
54 min: Christie is coming off and Ratima is on for his first cap, a great moment for the New Zealander at Eden Park. England have the scrum and it is clean, Smith opts for the cross field kick but this time it bounces out of play.
54 min: The line-out is good but again, the resulting attack is slightly sloppy. Steward finds Feyi-Waboso but his offload finds All Black hands. We come back to an earlier knock on from New Zealand, so we have another scrum. A slight break in play as Christie has a problem here.
53 min: New Zealand run it through the hands but great work from Cunningham-South sees them able to clear. Reece collects and kicks it off but he has taken it back into the 22 and so England have a line-out in a good position.
52 min: The scrum is won by New Zealand and they set up an attack.
Richard Hirst has emailed and he said:
Cricket on Friday, rugby on Saturday, football on Sunday! Hey, dreaming is free.
Not a bad weekend to be an England fan, Richard.
51 min: Dan is off for a HIA and so captain George is back. We are back underway with a scrum.
50 min: There is no foul play, Dan took friendly fire from Curry’s knee. Hopefully he is okay to continue.
50 min: England make their first changes with Underhill, George and Stuart off with Curry, Cole and Dan on. The match action sees tackles flying in and a player is heard saying “head injury” and the referee stops the game. Dan has taken a knee to the head.
PENALTY! New Zealand 13-17 England (Smith, 49)
It’s through.
49 min: New Zealand win think they have won a breakdown penalty but referee Berry explains the only reason that occurred was because Papali’i took a player out off of the ball and so the decision is changed. Smith points to the sticks.
48 min: The first scrum of the second half is clean from both sides and the hosts are able to clear through Perafeta’s boot. The All Blacks 15 have had a good few games, keeping B Barrett on the bench.
46 min: George puts in a good line-out and the whip it into action quickly instead of employing the maul. It comes back to captain George but New Zealand are impressive at the breakdown again and Tele’a rips the ball to win the penalty.
45 min: The England line-out is clean but their resulting attack is sloppy and Feyi-Waboso knocks on – the wing saved though as New Zealand is offside before the knock on occurred. Slade once again kicks to the corner.
44 min: A kick comes to Steward who runs but is stopped by De Groot with a crunching tackle. Neither side have really stamped authority on the second 40 yet, the latest action coming with an England penalty with J Barrett tackling Smith in the air. Slade bangs it into the corner.
42 min: Perofeta makes a break but is eventually tackled as the hosts look to throw the first punch in this half. McKenzie kicks away and it triggers a kicking battle, ending with the All Blacks running it through the hands.
Back underway! New Zealand 13-14 England
So can England make history in Auckland? Or will New Zealand fight back? The next 40 minutes to come. It looks as though Underhill will continue, a great sign for England.
Guy Hornsby has emailed and said:
What a brilliant Test and fascinating rugby, Sarah. NZ looking very dangerous but England’s defence has been really good and from a shaky start the scrum been more solid. The ABs line out looks very shaky, and for all their penalties we’ve saved a try and scored twice brilliantly through Smith’s boot and two athletic wings. This is so tight, but England’s attack needs to click a bit more. It’s going to be a gripping second half.
Yeah I agree it has been a great match so far and hopefully it continues in that fashion. The set piece battle is an interesting one with both teams, as you say, having a stronger aspect where their opposition has a weakness. I hope you enjoy the second half.
The referee Nic Berry was heard saying England’s Sam Underhill was bleeding just before half-time, as soon as I have an update on if he continues in this one I will let you know.
I spoke about Ardie Savea’s contribution to New Zealand’s try and it was spectacular. Have a look at his metres made:
This leg drive is next level 🤯#NZLvENG #AllBlacks pic.twitter.com/hV93m7WqUY
— All Blacks (@AllBlacks) July 13, 2024
This is the try that has nudged England ahead:
WONDERFUL FROM ENGLAND! 🙌
— Sky Sports Rugby Union (@SkySportsRugby) July 13, 2024
The pass from Marcus Smith to a high-flying Tommy Freeman who gets over the line! 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/HzvYNnjg33
My half-time write up drastically changed with that try from Freeman. It was going to be about how New Zealand had the score buffer at half-time they didn’t have last weekend, where the teams were level. But the try from England has properly spiced this up, it is the first time they have been ahead in this game. The questions that start to creep in are will England beat the All Blacks in New Zealand for the first time in 21 years? And will the All Blacks 30-year record at Eden Park be obliterated? All to come.
Half-time: New Zealand 13-14 England
Well, well, well. Will England hold onto this lead? They are in a great position.
CONVERTED TRY! New Zealand 13-14 England (Freeman, 41)
How about this!
England pick it up from the goal line drop-out and they just keep probing the line. They can’t puncture it and so Smith puts in another cross field kick, Freeman catches and scores. Huge. Smith converts.
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40 min: England pick up the ball after the restart after masterful work from Itoje, who is having another storming game for his country. Mitchell resorts to the boot after phases don’t produce much joy, McKenzie tracks back and clears.
PENALTY! New Zealand 13-7 England (McKenzie, 38)
McKenzie’s boot is good once more.
38 min: New Zealand’s line-out functions this time and it propels front foot ball. The hosts pick up a penalty advantage from the breakdown, given away by Earl, and we come back for it. Will the All Blacks point for sticks this time? Yes they do.
37 min: England collect from set piece and clear through Mitchell’s boot. Kicks are exchanged, ending with England’s Slade spilling but he manages to kick away – well managed from a tricky situation by the Exeter Chiefs man.
35 min: Itoje makes up for giving the penalty away with an intercept at the line-out, a question maybe on why they didn’t opt to kick for the points instead of going for a try there. Their line-out is their main weakness at the moment. Back to the game and the ball is kicked back and forth, ending with a kick off the pitch at the 22 from McKenzie.
33 min: J Barrett kicks clear and it looks like New Zealand have weathered the England storm. The line-out this time is good from the hosts and it goes through the hands, Itoje looks to turn it over but he gives away a breakdown penalty in the process. J Barrett kicks to the corner.
33 min: Christie does so well as he waits until the perfect time to tackle Earl at the back of the scrum, it then causes the hosts to win the penalty. There’s now a bit of pushing and shoving as tempers boil over, the referee marshalling both teams away from one another.
32 min: The line-out is initially disrupted by New Zealand but Slade picks up, a few phases later the referee pulls it back for a knock on so there’s another scrum to come. It’s a good set piece from both sides but as England attack Papali’i knocks on in the tackle – scrum time again.
30 min: England’s line-out is good once more but they attack is stunted again with a rogue pass to Lawrence bouncing off of his chest. New Zealand clear to halfway and the hosts are really at the heart of an England storm here as they win a penalty at the line-out, Smith kicks to the corner.
28 min: New Zealand are so physical at the breakdown that Smith is forced into a kick, J Barrett collects but slips at the same time. It’s close but the hosts hang on to it and Christie kicks clear.
27 min: The New Zealand put in at the scrum is clean and they clear, not with a lot of length on it and England will have a line-out on the 22. It’s good and Steve Borthwick’s side have another attack.
26 min: The scrum is reset but England eventually come away with it, they look to pounce but Lawrence knocks on so another scrum to come.
24 min: The restart sees the ball trickling into touch and New Zealand have a line-out close to their own line. There’s a knock on after Itoje is a menace again and England have the scrum.
PENATLY! New Zealand 10-7 England (McKenzie, 22')
McKenzie lines the kick up and nudges the hosts ahead.
21 min: New Zealand have a scrum five metres out and they get the penalty advantage, Mitchell disrupts the hosts and they are pushed backwards and McKenzie puts in a cross field kick of his own. It bounces just shy of Reece, that would have been a sure try. It comes back to the penalty and England captain Jamie George has been warned about the count, New Zealand opt for the sticks.
20 min: This time the All Black line-out gets to hands, they clear but Steward is under the high ball and the visitors are on the attack once more. Smith kicks this time and McKenzie picks it up, he does phenomenally to weave into attack, it comes to Tele’a who looks for Perofeta on the outside but it is England’s Smith who intercepts. Tele’a shouldn’t have given that pass, I think he could have scored by himself.
18 min: England’s attack ends with a kick which New Zealand pick up, they go through multiple phases but they don’t make much ground so Christie opts to the sky. Steward collects, it comes to Smith and he pops a kick just shy of the 22.
17 min: My word what a start to this encounter. Both sides are absolutely hungry here. Martin hits it out of play and New Zealand have a line-out which is stolen by England, the set piece not quite functioning for the All Blacks yet.
CONVERTED TRY! New Zealand 7-7 England (Feyi-Waboso, 14')
Now that is a response.
England’s line-out was slick, they run it through the phases but Smith spots space on the wing. He pops a lovely cross field kick in and Feyi-Waboso weaves to the line. Smith converts.
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13 min: So how will England respond? From the restart New Zealand take the ball well and McKenzie clears.
CONVERTED TRY! New Zealand 7-0 England (Tele'a, 11)
They whip it to the left wing and Tele’a is over.
In the attack Savea made huge metres with multiple defenders hanging off of him, what a world class player he is. The TMO did check if Tele’a’s feet were in touch or not but everything is all okay. McKenzie slots the conversion
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11 min: Itoje is a menace at the line-out but England are pinged for an infringement and so New Zealand tap and go, the closest attack we have seen so far in this game.
10 min: England disrupt the New Zealand line-out and the hosts knock on and so we have yet another scrum. The set piece this time seeing New Zealand winning the penalty and J Barrett kicks to the corner instead of opting for the sticks.
8 min: The scrum this time is better from England, who come away with it quickly. The kicking game then comes into play and it ends with a great boot from Smith finding touch just under halfway.
7 min: England’s attack only goes a few phases before they pass to Smith for a drop goal attempt, it is touched in the air and does not go through the posts. The hosts clear and they quickly race away. McKenzie pops a kick up and collects it himself, he passes to Perofeta and Taylor runs clear. He can’t quite get it to Tele’a and it’s spilled, a scrum to come and a moment to breathe.
5 min: New Zealand’s line-out functions well but they are massively under pressure in the defensive line, seeing J Barrett’s pass going slightly beyond Tele’a for a knock on – so we have a scrum. The All Blacks are crunching but England manage to hold onto it.
3 min: A frantic few minutes with end-to-end rugby which ends with a breakdown penalty awarded to New Zealand, J Barrett whacks it up field. If this is what we are in store for today we are in for on of the all-time great Tests.
2 min: Itoje almost nabs the kick-off with England taking the kick but it is S Barrett who takes it, the hosts work it left and send it up in the air to give England their first attack. They go through the phases but New Zealand are hugely impressive at the breakdown who turn over.
Kick-off! New Zealand 0-0 England
Here we go then. Can England destroy New Zealand’s Eden Park record? Or will the All Blacks continue to make it a fortress? All to come.
The teams cross over one another as the All Blacks get in position for the Haka. England stand arm-in-arm in a line to face it with New Zealand’s Codie Taylor leading. It is as intimidating and beautiful as ever.
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It is a packed Eden Park and the England fans are most definitely outnumbered but they male themselves heard during the anthem. But the real noise comes with the New Zealand anthem, spine-tingling.
The players have emerged at Eden Park after a light show at the iconic ground. We will have the anthems and the Haka before we get underway in this second Test.
An important read here:
England boss Steve Borthwick told Sky Sports on George Furbank being replaced by Freddie Steward because of injury: “Fred is a young man but he is an experienced international rugby team. It is a young side but and exciting England side, we unfortunately lost Geroge Furbank but we have a player like Freddie coming in.”
New Zealand head coach Scott Robertson was asked about the 30-year Eden Park record by Sky Sports: “We have covered it briefly. You don’t talk about it, you do it with action.”
And he added on the scrum discussions this week: “It is good when you talk about scrums and you aren’t a front rower, the game is going great.”
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I’d love to hear from you and find out where you are watching the game/getting your updates today. Are you on a beach on holiday? Cozy on your sofa? Get in touch and let me know via email or X (@rendellx).
Here’s a good read to preview the second Test from Rob Kitson who is in Auckland:
New All Blacks captain Scott Barrett has said of his new role: “I don’t think I’ll ever feel comfortable in the role and I think that’s a good place to be.
“I’ve got to play well. I’ve got to lead by example up front. That’s where my focus is and that will be my continued focus going forward.”
England head coach Steve Borthwick said: “If there’s one area I’d want to improve upon, there was a feeling midway through the second half that we weren’t as aggressive with the ball as we wanted to be. We’ve got such talent, pace and skill within this team. I want the players to go on to the grass on Saturday and play big.”
Read more:
The injury to George Furbank means Freddie Steward starts for England for the first time since the team played Wales in this year’s Six Nations. Since then Northampton Saints’ Furbank has been the preferred option.
The team news is here. New Zealand have made one change to their starting XV with Finlay Christie coming in at scrum-half for the injured TJ Perenara.
New Zealand: Stephen Perofeta; Sevu Reece, Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett, Mark Tele’a; Damian McKenzie, Finlay Christie; Ethan De Groot, Codie Taylor, Tyrel Lomax, Scott Barrett, Patrick Tuipulotu, Samipeni Finau, Dalton Papali’i, Ardie Savea
Replacements: Asafo Aumua, Ofa Tu’ungafasi, Fletcher Newell, Tupou Vaa’i, Luke Jacobson, Cortez Ratima, Anton Lienert-Brown, Beauden Barrett
England, meanwhile, has made two changes. When Steve Borthwick announced the team there was only change with Fin Baxter coming in for the injured Joe Marler.
However, during the week another change has been made as George Furbank is injured. Freddie Steward now starts.
England: Freddie Steward; Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, Henry Slade, Ollie Lawrence, Tommy Freeman; Marcus Smith, Alex Mitchell; Fin Baxter, Jamie George, Will Stuart, Maro Itoje, George Martin, Chandler Cunningham-South, Sam Underhill, Ben Earl.
Replacements: Theo Dan, Bevan Rodd, Dan Cole, Alex Coles, Tom Curry, Ben Spencer, Fin Smith, Ollie Sleightholme
Preamble
Hello and welcome to what is going to be a tasty second Test between New Zealand and England. The All Blacks secured a one-point victory in Dunedin last weekend but the performance will fill England with confidence that they can have a slice of history.
An England men’s team have not won a match against the All Blacks in New Zealand since 2003. Can they do so today? They are capable but they will have to topple the All Blacks at Eden Park, something no team has done for 30 years.
Both teams have been hampered by injuries and so on that basis they are on a level-playing field. We will have a look at the full team news shortly but it is interesting that Scott Robertson has opted for Stephen Perofeta again over Beauden Barrett.
The new head coach is certainly putting his print on the team after taking over from Ian Foster following the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
Let’s take a look at that team news now before kick-off at 8.05am BST.
