Story highlights
New Zealand win Bledisloe Cup
Australia bottom of table
Argentina edges out South Africa
The All Blacks triumphed 29-9 over Australia in the Bledisloe Cup, continuing a miserable run for the Wallabies.
The Australians were heavily beaten in their previous encounter with New Zealand – and it comes after a series defeat to England in June when they went down 44-40 in the final game.
Victory for the All Blacks puts them top of the table in the Rugby Championship and condemns Australia to the bottom and yet to score a point.
The official website of the competition between four Southern Hemisphere sides that also includes Argentina and South Africa tells of the dominance of New Zealand.
“New Zealand won in almost every facet of the game,” it says.
“The men in black pipped the Wallabies in defense as they made 10 more tackles than their near rivals, while the Wallabies missed a horrendous tally of 30 tackles.”
All Blacks coach Steve Hansen shared his delight at his team’s composure on the New Zealand team’s website.
“They threw everything at us, as we knew they would, and there was a bit of niggle and we just had to make sure we didn’t get caught up in it and kept our frustration tolerance high and just tried to play rugby,” he is quoted as saying.
“We scored some nice tries and felt our way through that and regathered ourselves at halftime and just continued. I think we really dominated that second half.”
Argentina came out on top in a close game with the Sprinboks in Salta. The Pumas shaded possession and managed to hang on for a 26-24 victory.
They now both share five points in the Rugby Championship, with the next round of games on September 10. New Zealand will face Argentina and Australia plays South Africa.