NEW ZEALAND’S FINAL Rugby World Cup dress rehearsal was more like a training session as the defending champions demolished Tonga 92-7 in an ominous warning before the showpiece tournament.
The All Blacks fell just short of 100 points in a merciless display against Tonga in Hamilton, where New Zealand scored 14 tries to one on Saturday.
Tonga managed to get on the board late in the one-sided game, but it was all about New Zealand, who were led by winger George Bridge’s four tries at Waikato Stadium.
Ben Smith, Ryan Crotty and Sevu Reece also had two tries apiece, while Beauden Barrett had seven conversions.
Steve Hansen’s All Blacks will now jet off for Japan before they open their World Cup defence against South Africa on September 21.
Playing their first day-time Test in New Zealand since the 2011 World Cup, the All Blacks were a class above from the outset following Reece’s opening try in the eighth minute.
Reece danced his way through Tonga’s defence, but no one would have imagined the rout to come as the All Blacks ran in eight tries for a demoralising 54-0 half-time lead.
New Zealand – who beat Tonga 47-9 in their last encounter at the 2015 World Cup – did not take their foot off the pedal in the second half, with records in sight.
Bridge came within touching distance of Marc Ellis’ record of six in a match, which he set at the 1995 World Cup against Japan, as he became the 13th All Black to score four tries in a Test.
The second half started with Bridge catching the ball from the restart and crossing after just nine seconds in a forgettable moment for Tonga.
New Zealand added another 38 points in the second 40 minutes and while Siale Piutau recorded a five-pointer for the visitors, Tonga were condemned to their second heaviest loss to the All Blacks following the 102-0 humiliation in 2000.
Murray Kinsella, Gavan Casey and Bernard Jackman make the case for Ireland winning… and tanking at the Rugby World Cup, as we gear up for Wales again:
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This result doesn’t mean anything – Tonga are a nation whose best players are repeatedly taken by New Zealand and England and the remainder of the players stay with their clubs because the national team can’t afford to fund them. So it’s not really a warning or a surprise by New Zealand!
@Darren Mullins: The laziest take in rugby. What players were taken by NZ and England? There’s one Tongan in the kiwi squad and he moved when he was 13/14.On the other hand I’d imagine there’s 15-20 New Zealander in the Tongan squad
@Eddie Hekenui: i think there’s still the perception out there that NZ are plucking guys out of the islands at the age of 20. Having islander heritage and playing for NZ is very different to being an islander who’s been ‘poached’ so to speak. If anything the Pacific nations do better out of New Zealand and Oz than the other way around.
@Eddie Hekenui: by the way I’m not sure if you watched the game but NZ weren’t even that good. I thought they were sloppy enough, Tonga were just simply awful.
@Eddie Hekenui: what are you on about mate? New Zealand are notorious for poaching players from the Pacific islander countries so maybe not Tonga specifically but it’s happening all the time and will continue to do so. England have the Vunipola’s and Tuilagi etc etc – so it’s you whose the laziest take on Rugby !
@Darren Mullins: so name the ones they notoriously poached ..
@Darren Mullins: You just made your first point again. Eddie’s point is correct. You can’t mix up being of Pacific Island heritage or being born there. For example, neither Vunipola brother was born there ( one Oz, one NZ ) .
@Limón Madrugada: rokocoko, sivivatu both Fiji, Jerry Collins – Samoa to name a few, the list goes on !
There’s no money to make a career for themselves with their own countries so that had to switch allegiances!
@Darren Mullins: Thanks for proving just how lazy is it. You named 3 players all of whom moved to the UK as kids. Plus one of the Vunipolas was born in NZ and the other was born in Australia.
@Darren Mullins: NZ’s scouting network must be other worldly to have spotted the talent in a 5 year old Joe Rocokoko and pre teen Jerry Collins. I’ll give you Sitivatu but even he moved at 15. You’re batting one in six here
@Darren Mullins: your misinformed, your listing guys that don’t back up your argument. They’re either no longer playing or haven’t been capped via the 3 year residency rule (Vunipola, Manu etc).
The Australians on the other hand have quite a few Fijians and some Tongans in their ranks but NZ don’t.
Personally I don’t agree with Fijians being poached to play for France, they’ve no business doing that.
@Jim Demps: To be honest it’s a myth perpetuated by the Stephen Jones, Neil Francis’s of the worlds who see “funny name” and brown skin and think poaching. NZ are guilty of capping the odd islander and should play more tests there etc but they also help keep rugby on the islands going. The Celtic nations have repeatedly blocked eligibility law changes pushed by NZ that would help the islands and NZ changed their team of capture so as not to tie down young players with pacifika heritage.
@Eddie Hekenui: how do you know what ages they moved to these places at ????? #spoofer
@Darren Mullins: There’s this thing called the internet. You should try it some time. You can start with this article.
http://tier2rugby.blogspot.com/2014/07/the-truth-how-wrong-old-all-blacks.html?m=1
@Eddie Hekenui: oh well I’ll be damned
@Darren Mullins: JR moved to NZ aged 5, Sibi aged 15, JC moved with his family as an infant.
Since 2005, Eng, Aust, Ire, Sco & Wales have all had more foreign born players.
The 2018 NZ touring side had 4 players born outside NZ. All 4 of them were under 16 when they moved to NZ. Around 3% of All Blacks were born on the Islands.
At WRC19, the number of foreign born players per team is:
13: Samoa; 12: Tonga; 11: Wales, Scotland and Japan; 10: France; 6: Australia, Italy, USA; 5: Canada, Ireland, New Zealand; 4: Romania; 3: England, Fiji; 2: Namibia; 1: Georgia, South Africa, Uruguay; 0: Argentina.
Meanwhile, 39 NZ born players will be playing for other countries. Including all 13 of Samoa’s foreign contingent.
By each and every measure, you’re wrong.
@Darren Mullins: i blame Jean Kleyn ,
@Darren Mullins: Just to follow up a comment I made above there are 18 Kiwi’s in the Tongan squad, 10 of him played for the Baby Blacks and 5 more who moved to NZ as kids so played most of their rugby there. And there are 14 Kiwi’s in the Samoan squad, 3 of whom represented NZ at 7′s/U20′s and 7 who moved to NZ as kids. So that’s 23 lads who were developed in NZ playing for Tonga and 21 for Samoa.
On the flip side there is one Tongan, one Fijian and one Samoan in the NZ squad. And two of those, Tu’ungafasi and Laulala, moved as kids for family reasons and one, Reece, moved aged 17 on an athletics scholarship.
In total there are 53 guys born in NZ playing for 11 different countries at this WC.
The issue here isn’t poaching , it’s the fact that World Rugby turns a blind eye to players from Tier 2 Nations being ‘encouraged ‘ by their clubs in France Top14 and lower divisions and in England to renounce the national squad in return for better wages and a more stable contract . It happens all the time . And shows that they couldn’t give a flying f@(k about Tier 2 Nations , their players or anything outside Tier 1 .
@Limón Madrugada: they should really make an example of a club on that. It’s written into the laws so they have the legislation for it. Renaldo Bothma retiring last week was a joke
@Limón Madrugada: 100% agree. They don’t even try and hide it either.
This scoreline underscores how farcical the upcoming so called RWC is..As a non rugby bod,let me make a prediction on the final 8
England
Ireland
Scotland
Wales
Australia
New Zealand
South Africa
France
@rufustfirefly: Japan give Scotland a run for their money that being said Scotland could give us a run too
@rufustfirefly: Really isn’t. Outside of football, pretty much every pro sport is dominated by a handful of nations. Nothing at all unusual here.
@Peter McCarthy: our side of football? You’re kidding right?
@Dave O Keeffe: *outside
@Dave O Keeffe: Should have clarified, I meant team sports. And yes, I think so. Hockey, cricket, basketball, rugby league.. all would be dominated by a few teams. Can’t think of many other pro team sports, maybe I’m missing some.
@Peter McCarthy: International football is always the same few teams too, club football as well
@Peter McCarthy: football is pretty damn predictable too. Look at the last World Cup, the only outlier to get to the business end of the competition were Croatia. They made the semis in 2002 too so hardly a minnow. The list of world Cup winners for a global sport is actually really short.
@Shane McGettrick: I dislike football and love rugby but can see that football has much greater international depth than rugby.
They also played the last 15 minutes with 14 men. Brought the uninjured Crotty off to practice for getting a yellow. Bit farcical.