Sivivatu triple leads the way in Cardiff
New Zealand completed their Northern Hemisphere tour with another comprehensive victory, beating Wales 45-10 in front of a sold-out Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday.
Not happy with accusing New Zealand of being "honest cheats" in the week Wales opted to antagonise their formidable opponents further with a tradition changing request over the Haka. The result being that the Haka was performed in private in front of a solitary television camera, a travesty for the paying public and a grave error from the Welsh management and committee.
All Blacks captain Richie McCaw said the team acted to protect the tradition of Haka that is integral to New Zealand culture and the All Blacks’ heritage.
"The tradition needs to be honoured properly if we're going to do it," said McCaw.
"If the other team wants to mess around, we'll just do the Haka in the shed. At the end of the day, Haka is about spiritual preparation and we do it for ourselves. Traditionally fans can share the experience too and it’s sad that they couldn't see it today," he said.
Jerry Collins and New Zealand spoke in the week of ending the season with a taste of victory, as for many of the squad this will be their last game for four months. Not a bad way to finish up before an intense conditioning period in preparation for next years World Cup, which on recent form could well be a foregone conclusion. If anybody can match New Zealand could they please let themselves be know now.
There are few superlatives left to describe this New Zealand side, who have swept aside all that has stood before them in the last month. Today they were ultra effective when it came to the basics, none more so than Dan Carter, and at times when the occasion required they were outstanding and sublimely clinical.
It was not that Wales were inadequate or lacking in basic skills, rather that New Zealand were far more effective with the ball when they had it. The half time statistics were, give or take a few percentage, even, suggesting Wales were well in the game, this however was never the case. With ten minutes gone New Zealand were ten points to the good and even the most ardent Welshman would have admitted Wales were all but beaten.
Wales did have one major downfall -- they kicked far too loosely out of hand, a cardinal sin when you look at the New Zealand back three and how dangerous they were on the counter attack. Wales are not alone here, as both France and England were guilty of the same offence, it is just a wonder Wales did not learn from their counterparts.
The game was one of contrasts for many periods of play, and it only changed for Wales when they introduced James Hook to proceedings. The first half in particular highlighted the gulf in class, not just between New Zealand and Wales but the rest of the rugby world.
With ball in hand there were relentless waves of All Black attack crossing the gain line with unerring consistency, and when kicking Carter rarely strayed form the touchline and when he did the chase was good enough to spare his blushes.
The contrasting side of the story was how Wales on three occasions went past six phases for a total gain of zero meters. The lack of direction with the boot ultimately cost the Welsh three tries and countless meters in field position.
What made this display even more impressive was the fact New Zealand did it with fourteen players for twenty minutes, both McCaw and Hore falling foul of "cheating honestly" and spending time in the sin bin. In that time the All Blacks conceded seven points, which is the average for one yellow card let alone two, but more importantly added fourteen to their total.
The introduction of Hook in the second half gave Wales an added impetus they desperately needed. He was the one player who managed to find a gap in the otherwise solid All Black defence. Had he started Wales may have found themselves in a position to challenge for longer than three minutes.
We have become used to the attacking flair the All Blacks posses in abundance, but what has been so impressive this month and again today is their defence. The aggression and power the Black wall tackles with is sometimes frightening, and none more so than when the blonde topped Jerry Collins puts in a bone crunching hit. Today he was at his brilliant best epitomised with three tackles in a forty second period in the second half.
When Luke McAlister cantered over in the third minute one sensed it was not a case of if New Zealand win, but by how many. The try was a result of Kevin Morgan's poor kick, and resulted in Sivivatu being spoilt for choice as to who to pass to, in the end he opted for McAlister on the inside who had a clear run under the posts.
Dan Carter then took centre stage with the boot, adding three long range penalties in fifteen minutes, before Wales finally got on the scoreboard with a Stephen Jones penalty. This seemed to spark New Zealand a little as all of a sudden there was more urgency and fluency to their game resulting in a try double for Sitiveni Sivivatu.
The first stemmed from a rather fortuitous bounce of the ball, but the rest of the move was total rugby at its best. The interplay between forwards and backs was nothing short of sensational and was rounded off seven phases later with second row Keith Robinson filling in at scrum half to spin a wide pass out to Sivivatu who scored in the corner.
Wales can only blame themselves for conceding a try on the stroke of half time, committing the sin of gifting New Zealand turnover ball, the very possession they thrive off. Carter started the counter but it was Conrad Smith holding three defenders that gave Sivivatu the space to cut back in to as he raced in under the posts.
Half time and Wales were already a beaten team.
The second half was much the same as the first only this time Wales found some room to play in, mainly through the ever impressive James Hook, but it was too little too late. They will be able to take various positives from the game, reiterating the fact they did not play that badly they were simply outclassed.
Carter slotted his fourth penalty before Wales scored a scant consolation try. With McCaw in the bin, for what can only be called a dubious decision, and three catch and drives before all resulting in penalties, Wales finally got over through Martyn Williams. Hook added the extras and that was it as for as Wales were concerned.
As if offended by Wales scoring New Zealand took less than two minutes to reply and it all came from Nick Evan's first touch of the game and in honesty all looked far too easy for the All Blacks. Quick ball from the line out allowed Evans to accelerate onto the ball, slicing between Shanklin and Popham, and then execute the easiest of passes to Sivivatu who completed his hat-trick.
With New Zealand heading for a comfortable victory Dave Pearson added the gloss to their victory awarding a penalty try. Someone may like to point out to Mr Pearson that the All Blacks do not need any help in scoring tries, nevertheless by law it was a penalty try, but in the end was merely academic.
The All Blacks tour comes to a triumphant end after four convincing wins, all impressive in their different ways, and none more so than the another. Carter seems to have ironed out the mysterious flaws he found in his game and Jerry Collins has announced himself as a defender of the highest order, and he also has the attack to back it up. If they continue this form onto next September there is only one outcome, not that they need a world cup to prove their greatness, they do that just fine with their rugby now.
Man of the Match: For Wales everyone tried but eventually it was all in vein. Stephen Jones tried to find the inspiration to spark his team to greater things but was met with a Black wall time and again. Dwayne Peel was always busy and James Hook added an extra dimension but all too late. In the forwards Jonathan Thomas gave his all and more but lacked the support he needed, in particular from the front five.
For New Zealand it is becoming standard to say you could pick any one of the side, but that is the stark reality of how could this squad really is. Carter seemed to dictate play without ever hitting his prime, not that he needed to with the likes of Luke McAlister and Conrad Smith outside him. Sitiveni Sivivatu scored a hat-trick and it is not often you do that at international level without taking the man of the match prize. But for us today there was one unstoppable force on the field and that was Jerry Collins. In attack he was direct and hugely effective. Gone are the days he would tuck the ball under his arm and plough on, now he is aware of his options as he eats up the yards. Then there is his defence which is simply awesome. He is aggressive, powerful, and focused and when he hits he doesn't just stop players he sends them back. His three tackles in forty seconds summed up his attitude to defence, an aspect of his game he has become known for.
Moment of the Match: New Zealand gave us plenty of these, and Wales to their credit contributed a few late on but we eventually decided on Nick Evan's first touch. Wales had applied concentrated pressure and were rewarded with a deserved try, but less than 120 seconds later had that score wiped out. Nick Evans on for Carter, took the ball, his first touch, sliced the Welsh defence open and sent Sitiveni Sivivatu in for his hat-trick. For a player who had only played seven minutes in the last month he showed that he can be a more than capable deputy to Carter.
Villain of the Match: There may have been two yellow cards, albeit for technical infringements, and a few rowdy arguments but without doubt this award goes to the WRU Officials who deprived the crowd of the Haka. The Haka is a tradition the Kiwi's are proud of and crowds the world over yearn to see live. So for the WRU to try and change this tradition was ludicrous and unjustified. Take note WRU, nobody benefited from your actions but instead were deprived of one of rugby's greatest sights.
The scorers:
For Wales:
Tries: M.Williams
Conversions: Hook
Penalties: S.Jones
For New Zealand:
Tries: Sivivatu 3, McAlister, Penalty
Conversions: Carter 2, Evans 2
Penalties: Carter 4
Yellow Cards: McCaw (New Zealand), Hore (New Zealand)
The teams:
Wales: 15 Kevin Morgan, 14 Mark Jones, 13 Tom Shanklin, 12 Sonny Parker, 11 Shane Williams, 10 Stephen Jones (c), 9 Dwayne Peel, 8 Ryan Jones, 7 Martyn Williams, 6 Jonathan Thomas, 5 Ian Evans, 4 Ian Gough, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Rhys Thomas, 1 Duncan Jones.
Replacements: 16 Matthew Rees, 17 Gethin Jenkins, 18 Alun Wyn Jones, 19 Alix Popham, 20 Michael Phillips, 21 James Hook, 22 Gavin Henson.
New Zealand: 15 Mils Muliaina, 14 Rico Gear, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Luke McAlister, 11 Sitiveni Sivivatu, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Byron Kelleher, 8 Rodney So'oialo, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 Jerry Collins, 5 Ali Williams, 4 Keith Robinson, 3 Carl Hayman, 2 Anton Oliver, 1 Neemia Tialata.
Replacements: 16 Andrew Hore, 17 Tony Woodcock, 18 James Ryan, 19 Reuben Thorne, 20 Piri Weepu, 21 Nick Evans, 22 Ma'a Nonu.
Referee: Dave Pearson (England)
Touch judges: Chris White (England), David Changleng (Scotland)
Television match official: Malcolm Changleng (Scotland)
Assessor: Steve Hilditch (Ireland)
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