'O'Mahony redefines what it means to be a warrior': Peter Jackson's match ratings
"Peter O'Mahony climbing back to his feet despite requiring running repairs on at least four occasions. His literally in-your-face spat with Sam Cane symbolised Ireland’s triumph. Herculean"
Did everything asked of him on a night when the All Blacks offered surprisingly little to disturb his comfort. Ireland’s domination was such that rarely, if ever, can a full back from north of the Equator have had so little to do defensively.
An electrifying return to the Test arena amounted to more than a decisive helping hand in the opening try. The rattling effect on the opposition could be gauged by Leicester Fainga’anuku’s assault when the Connacht wing next took flight.
Robbed of an almost certain try by an off-the-ball foul only to be put off the field a few minutes later by a much worse one, the victim of Angus Ta’avao’s dangerous tackle. The blow left Ireland to manage without their most creative back for the last 50 minutes.
Will be kicking himself for the dropped pass when the All Blacks were draped over the ropes and clinging on as much by instinct as anything. A score then would probably have ensured New Zealand paid the full price for their indiscipline.
Another whose careless hands contributed to the recurring stays of execution granted to the All Blacks throughout a first 40 of almost unrelenting dominance. Didn’t get much better thereafter with one pass flung above Hansen’s head straight into touch.
Given the furore over his selection after the head blow at Eden Park, how ironic that the supreme ringmaster should have been brought down by an innocuous non-contact mishap. A slip kicking for touch forced him off one Test point short of a thousand but with history made.
Better than the previous week but still some way short of the demanding standards set for himself during the Six Nations. In the cold light of day he will wonder why Ireland failed to score over a 35-minute period when their opponents were twice reduced to 13 men..
Ray McLoughlin springs to mind among Irish props who have done famous things in New Zealand but not even the late, lamented Connacht tactician got round to scoring two tries in a Test. Who knows, Porter’s substitution 15 minutes from time might have robbed him of a hat-trick.
As per usual, a principal figure in the charge of the heavy brigade. Fell a metre or so short of a solo first-half try after his pace and power had New Zealand coming apart at the seams.
Continues to scale ever greater heights towards the summit of rugby’s Everest. His number of Test victories over New Zealand is now up to five, five more than most players ever achieve: four for Ireland (Chicago, Dublin twice, Dunedin), one for the Lions (Wellington).
Terrific from start to finish, splitting the All Blacks asunder within the first 90 seconds and still going full blast at the end of a match which spanned almost 110 minutes. Barely a hand or a foot out of place as well as a significant role in Porter’s second try.
Critical steals as the front jumper in a match when New Zealand rarely risked aiming for the middle of the line-out let alone the tail. Can have no complaints over his binning just before half-time for what the referee called ‘repeated infringements.’
A wondrous example of how he continues to redefine what it means to be a warrior. Kept climbing back to his feet despite requiring running repairs on at least four occasions. His literally in-your-face spat with Sam Cane symbolised Ireland’s triumph. Herculean.
Credited with making more tackles, 21, than anyone else on either side. Nobody could have missed fewer because the stats say he didn’t miss one all match long. Another performance to reinforce his status among the very best open side wing forwards in the game - and more to come next week. 7½.
Another mighty factor in Irish supremacy at the break-down and elsewhere. His telescopic ankle-tapping of Jordie Barrett extinguished any danger of the All Blacks doing their usual trick of finding a way out of their predicament.Â
Bundee Aki, an explosive presence.
Can never have experienced a Test like it before and unlikely to do so again if he plays for another ten years. Even on the back foot, ever ready to run from deep. Would have ensured a tense finale had Doris’ tackle not brought him down.
Some touchline acrobatics in a lost cause made all the more so by the fact that he had to wait almost an hour for a decent pass. New Zealand wings are used to feasting on such rich pickings that the real danger of further starvation next week will cause a serious loss of sleep.
Strong and swift but failed to break free of Irish clutches, never mind break the shackles. It wasn’t for any lack of effort but he must have sensed well before the end that there would be no way back.
Failed to stop Porter muscling over for the first of his double. While that was understandable given the physical mis-match, he had no excuses for fumbling a long line-out throw in midfield with space to exploit.
A stricter referee would have sent him off without a second thought for his leaping assault on Hansen. His temporary departure marked the start of a period when Ireland hounded the All Blacks into losing their heads.
One stab of the foot, ‘nutmegging’ Porter on the goalline, was all he needed to poach his 40th Test try and offer New Zealand fleeting hope. Withdrawn surprisingly early, perhaps another sign of the frazzled state of the Kiwi management.
Feast one week, famine the next. Unused to being on the back foot and consequently found himself going nowhere in a hurry before being replaced for the last quarter.
As impressive in defeat as he had been in victory seven days earlier. Deserves real credit for ensuring that his all-round game came shining through despite the wreckage all around him.
Unable to do anything to rescue a team jammed into reverse gear. Ireland did such a number on the All Blacks that their mauling game, as driven by Taylor, never got going.
Ten minutes in the bin was a cheap price to pay for denying Ireland at least five points when New Zealand were in danger of going to rack and ruin.
A gigantic figure until his head caught Sexton’s hip, forcing a temporary withdrawal. Great work in shoring up resistance before even he ran out of sandbags in the face of the unrelenting tidal wave of green.
Another entitled to hold his head high. The oldest of the Barrett brothers marked his 50th Test with a prodigious performance in denying Ireland the landslide win their domination warranted.
Forced off to make way for Angus Ta’avao, the substitute tighthead who achieved the notoriety of being sent off while he was being helped off with blood all over his face. The self-inflicted wound from a dangerous tackle reduced his team to 13.
Started with a try-saving tackle on the stampeding Beirne, finished with his team in disarray. In between, the harassed captain was told by referee Jaco Peyper after his team had been torpedoed by one red and two yellows: ‘You need to have a serious chat’, meaning those who were still on the field.
Man-of-the-match in Auckland, New Zealand lost their most dynamic forward when they lost the plot. They sacrificed him for a substitute prop after losing their tighthead to the bin in the mistaken belief that they could bring him back.
Will Jordan, late try even if it didn’t matter.
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