New Zealand turned their Eden Park fortress into a statement on Saturday, dismantling Ireland 40-21 to stretch their unbeaten run at the Auckland ground to 53 Tests and move to three wins from three in the inaugural Nations Championship.
The All Blacks led 28-7 at the break, scoring four of their six tries in a ruthless opening half. Lock Patrick Tuipulotu set the tone, making 11 carries before the interval and barging over for the game's first try. Wing Will Jordan crossed again to underline his standing as the All Blacks' all-time leading try-scorer, taking his tally to six in three Tests this campaign, and captain Ardie Savea and Anton Lienert-Brown were also among the scorers. Ireland hit back with tries to Jack Conan and Joe McCarthy but never seriously threatened a ground where they have still not won in 32 years.
Coach Dave Rennie, who had spent the build-up warning that Ireland were "one of the best sides in the world," refused to gush afterwards. "It's a pass mark, but we'll need to do better," he said. He was pointed about a sluggish start and a loose finish. "I thought we were pretty passive defensively in the first 10 or 15 minutes, but really good beyond that," Rennie said. On the closing quarter he added: "I thought we were excellent after half-time, and probably disappointing in that last sort of 25 minutes where we were just loose."
Fullback Damian McKenzie was named man of the match, repeatedly beating the first defender and topping the game for tackle busts. Savea led from the front with a game-high three turnovers, having played down the weight of the streak all week. "We haven't really had to talk about it because we all know what's at stake," the captain said before kickoff. "We all know, so we don't fear it."
For Ireland and Andy Farrell, it was another Eden Park lesson. The coach had framed the trip as a rare privilege rather than a burden. "I feel we're the fortunate ones, we're the lucky ones in the sense that we get the opportunity to go to Eden Park," Farrell said in the build-up, calling for "the performance of our lives." He had also been generous about Rennie's rebuild, saying he had been "super-impressed" and that the coach "brought a bit of steel back to them as well, so it certainly makes them very dangerous."
That steel was on show from the first whistle. Even a yellow card to loose forward Luke Jacobson inside the opening quarter failed to hand Ireland a foothold; the tourists coughed up possession and New Zealand punished them. Jordie Barrett was immense at second five-eighth, his aerial work and rush defence squeezing Ireland's playmakers, while the home pack won the collision battle Rennie had demanded.
The win keeps New Zealand top of the Nations Championship standings with a perfect record and burnishes an Eden Park aura untouched since France's famous 1994 raid. Ireland, for all Farrell's pre-match optimism, leave Auckland still chasing a first victory at a venue that has become world rugby's most stubborn riddle.
