WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand’s national rugby union team, the legendary All Blacks, secured their second consecutive victory at the inaugural Nations Championship on Saturday, grinding out a 47-17 win over Italy after a shaky opening half that exposed persistent flaws in their game plan. Though the final scoreline was lopsided, the match highlighted a growing gap between the team’s high offensive ambitions and their inconsistent on-field execution, leaving questions ahead of their much-anticipated next matchup against Ireland in Auckland.
From the opening whistle, repeated errors from the All Blacks handed Italy an early advantage. Just days after a narrow 34-32 win over France that was also marred by unforced mistakes in handling, aerial defense, and discipline, the All Blacks gifted Italy the opening try. Italian center Tommaso Menoncello crossed the line after capitalizing on an All Blacks turnover, putting the visitors out to an early lead.
The All Blacks responded within five minutes to narrow the score, with lock Sam Darry touching down for his first try of the match. But Italy’s tight defense denied New Zealand both space and possession, holding the All Blacks to a 14-10 lead at the halftime break.
The turning point of the first half came in the 30th minute, when Will Jordan scored his first try of the match against the run of play. The try, set up by a perfectly placed chip kick from Jordie Barrett and a deft offload from Leroy Carter, gave the All Blacks their first lead of the game. More importantly, it marked the first of three tries that would cement Jordan’s place in All Blacks history.
Two debutants made the most of their opportunities after coming off the bench to turn the tide of the match in the second half. Winger Josh Moorby made his first test appearance on his 26th birthday, entering the game in the 31st minute before lighting up the pitch after halftime. Backrower Anton Segner, the first Germany-born player ever selected for the All Blacks, also made his debut coming off the bench at the start of the second half, with his parents flying in from Frankfurt to witness the historic moment.
Moorby was the star of the second half, playing a key role in three of the All Blacks’ five second-half tries that turned a narrow deficit into a comfortable win. Just two minutes after the resumption of play, he broke down the left wing and combined with his Hurricanes teammate Cam Roigard to score. He then won an intercept that nearly put him over the line before prop Ethan de Groot crashed over for a try in his 42nd test. Finally, he outpaced Italy’s cover defense to set up Jordan’s second try of the match, which equaled the All Blacks’ all-time test try record of 49 set by Doug Howlett.
Just 10 minutes later, Jordan claimed the record outright when he scored his third try, created by a quick-tapped penalty from Jordie Barrett. Jordan finished the match with 50 career test tries from just 56 appearances, a new milestone for New Zealand rugby. Reflecting on the record after the match, Jordan called the achievement humbling. “I think back to when I was a kid practicing my chip and chase in the back yard. To think I’d be here today, it’s hugely humbling,” he said. “I guess as a winger on the end of the chain I’ve been part of some great teams over the last seven years.”
Italy captain Michele Lamaro acknowledged that his side could not match the All Blacks’ second-half intensity, after a strong opening 40 minutes put the world-famous side on the back foot. “I think we started really well and we were putting them under pressure,” Lamaro said. “They were trying to compete around the breakdown and we were really strong in that area. They came back on the field after halftime with another gear and we couldn’t hold them.”
Italy was forced to play most of the final quarter with 14 men, after a yellow card given to Niccolo Cannone for an attempted head butt on Roigard was upgraded to a red card. Despite being a man down, Italy still crossed for a second try through Leonardo Marin in the 57th minute. The All Blacks were also reduced to 14 men late in the match, when flyhalf Ruben Love was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on in the 71st minute, his second yellow card in two matches.
Italy entered the match still reeling from an opening-round loss to Japan in Tokyo, leaving them winless after two rounds of the new tournament. For the All Blacks, while the win keeps their tournament record unbeaten at 2-0, head coach Dave Rennie will likely have plenty to address ahead of next weekend’s clash with world number one ranked Ireland. Persistent unforced errors at both ends of the pitch throughout the match have emerged as a worrying pattern for the side after similar problems plagued their opening win over France.