TOPS

McKenzie nears perfect score

Named man of the match, New Zealand’s fly-half did himself no credit. He scored 6/8 with his foot, Damian McKenzie missed very little during the match. Add to this his six defenders beaten and five successful tackles, and the 29-year-old’s game was more than complete. Replacing Beauden BarrettAfter suffering a concussion against England last weekend, McKenzie has largely done his job, which is rather bad news for France.

A solid New Zealand defense

The French backs have been warned: they’ll have to be at their very best to get past this New Zealand defense. Ireland only had one major moment of strength at the start of the second half, when they scored a try (42nd). 92 rucks won compared to 58 for the Irish, with only 14 missed tackles, the black wall had mounted the ramparts in Dublin for this gala encounter. The best example of the solidity and impact of Scott Robertson’s players was the ball won on the ground by Savea (74th) after the Irish had remained for several minutes in the 22 meters without finding a solution from one wing to the other.

A steamroller in diesel mode

It took a while for the All Blacks to unroll their rugby, but their time came and they made good use of it. Will Jordan crucified Ireland late on (68th) to confirm their ten-point lead. Without showing off, Ardie Savea and co. took control of the match from the 25th minute onwards, never letting up again, apart from a spell of slackness in the second half. With 459 meters gained, it was hard to stop a steamroller in motion.

FLOPS

Too much waste: 21 hand errors

Andy Farrell’s players had slippery hands. A total of 21 hand fouls were recorded during the match, with Ireland conceding 13. This left far too many opportunities for the All Blacks to score points, notably via Damian McKenzie, who wasted no time in kicking 18 penalty points. In both attack and defence, Ireland lacked confidence, making them febrile in both attack and defence. Andy Farrell’s players gained just 200 meters of ball in hand, and were delighted to score a try.

Ireland without Sexton

After spending almost 15 years with outstanding fly-halves, the Shamrock XV has hit a low point. Crowley and then Frawley lacked that little something that made the Irish forwards so special. Frawley, who came on as a second-half substitute, was a real pain on the Aviva Stadium pitch, releasing many a ball from his hands. Ireland need to get their heads up quickly, as a performance like Friday night’s is not worthy of a top 3 team in the world.