Winger Caleb Clarke produced a stunning performance of power running in his first Test start to provide some much needed attacking thrust as New Zealand beat Australia 27-7 in their second Bledisloe Cup Test at Eden Park in Auckland on Sunday.
The authoritative win erased memories of a 16-16 draw in the first game last week and also gave the All Blacks the advantage in retaining the Bledisloe Cup, which they have held since 2003, as the series moves to Australia for the final two matches.
The pressure on All Blacks coach Ian Foster was no doubt alleviated a little with the result, which was played in front of a crowd of 46,049 after Covid-restrictions were lifted earlier this month.
"He is a special player and a special kid," All Blacks captain Sam Cane, who scored his side's final try, said of the 21-year-old Clarke. "He didn't let anyone down."
Clarke's ability to break tackles was helped by a far better performance from the All Blacks forwards, who had been criticised for a lack of intensity last week.
Some long-standing issues of attacking penetration against an aggressive defence were also laid bare in Wellington, which only increased the pressure on Foster, whose elevation to the coaching role has not been met with universal approval in New Zealand.
The All Blacks, however, rarely have successive poor performances and the Wallabies were well aware that after their 47-26 record victory last year in Perth they were thrashed 36-0 in Auckland the following week.
"They were better this week," Wallabies captain Michael Hooper said after Sunday's result, where the All Blacks only conceded a first half try to Marika Koroibete.
"They got the better of us ... and were very good in turnover and capitalised on our mistakes."
The Wallabies put the All Blacks under enormous early pressure before the home side started winning collisions and increased the pace of the game and began to break tackles, with fullback Beauden Barrett and Clarke making several strong runs.
Richie Mo'unga slotted a 19th-minute penalty as the territorial pressure told before scrumhalf Aaron Smith scored a try four minutes later from an attacking scrum.
Mo'unga converted to give the All Blacks a 10-0 advantage before the Wallabies again showed how dangerous they can be with the ball in hand when Koroibete crossed after a turnover and James O'Connor's conversion narrowed the gap to 10-7.
Clarke then was the catalyst for tries within the space of three second half minutes to Barrett and Savea with two powerful runs, the second where he bounced out of several tackles, to give the home side a 20-7 lead.
Some superb defence by Mo'unga stopped Koroibete from scoring his second try shortly after, before hooker Brandon Paenga-Amosa had a try overturned by referee Angus Gardner.
Cane finished off a sweeping movement less than 90 seconds later to give them a 27-7 lead that ended the Australian challenge.
"We put a marker down and that has to be the base now, [because] this is [the best] Wallabies team I have seen in a while," Foster said.
"They stay in the fight and we need to fight for 80 minutes."
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
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HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Most F1 world titles
7 — Michael Schumacher (1994, ’95, 2000, ’01 ’02, ’03, ’04)
7 — Lewis Hamilton (2008, ’14,’15, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20)
5 — Juan Manuel Fangio (1951, ’54, ’55, ’56, ’57)
4 — Alain Prost (1985, ’86, ’89, ’93)
4 — Sebastian Vettel (2010, ’11, ’12, ’13)
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Japan 30-10 Russia
Tries: Matsushima (3), Labuschange | Golosnitsky
Conversions: Tamura, Matsuda | Kushnarev
Penalties: Tamura (2) | Kushnarev
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Batti Gul Meter Chalu
Producers: KRTI Productions, T-Series
Director: Sree Narayan Singh
Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Divyenndu Sharma, Yami Gautam
Rating: 2/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Asia Cup Qualifier
Venue: Kuala Lumpur
Result: Winners play at Asia Cup in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in September
Fixtures:
Wed Aug 29: Malaysia v Hong Kong, Nepal v Oman, UAE v Singapore
Thu Aug 30: UAE v Nepal, Hong Kong v Singapore, Malaysia v Oman
Sat Sep 1: UAE v Hong Kong, Oman v Singapore, Malaysia v Nepal
Sun Sep 2: Hong Kong v Oman, Malaysia v UAE, Nepal v Singapore
Tue Sep 4: Malaysia v Singapore, UAE v Oman, Nepal v Hong Kong
Thu Sep 6: Final
Asia Cup
Venue: Dubai and Abu Dhabi
Schedule: Sep 15-28
Teams: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, plus the winner of the Qualifier
The stats
Ship name: MSC Bellissima
Ship class: Meraviglia Class
Delivery date: February 27, 2019
Gross tonnage: 171,598 GT
Passenger capacity: 5,686
Crew members: 1,536
Number of cabins: 2,217
Length: 315.3 metres
Maximum speed: 22.7 knots (42kph)
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