Wales beat New Zealand 35-28 in Cardiff on Saturday to end a 73-year wait for a win over the All Blacks. It is Wales’s first victory against New Zealand since 1953, and one of the greatest results in Welsh rugby history.
The win came in the Nations Championship at Principality Stadium. Wales scored five tries, then held New Zealand up over the line three times in the last half-hour to hold on. The home crowd, a sea of red flags, roared the team home.
How Wales did it
Wales made a stunning start. After just 80 seconds, Louis Rees-Zammit kicked over the top of New Zealand’s defence on his first touch of the ball, and Tomos Williams scored. Sam Costelow converted to open up a 7-0 lead. First-half tries from Dewi Lake and Archie Griffin, also converted by Costelow, put Wales in charge at 14-0 within the first six minutes.
New Zealand hit back through Cortez Ratima, and Wallace Sititi crossed before half-time. Fehi Fineanganofo scored just before the whistle to make it 21-21 at the break. Wales then struck early in the second half with tries from Eddie James and Louis Rees-Zammit. Costelow converted all five Welsh tries, one of them from the touchline, for a 35-21 lead. Peter Lakai’s try made it a seven-point game, but wave after wave of All Blacks attack was repelled.
The numbers tell the story of the defence. New Zealand had 65% of the ball, and Wales made 332 tackles to New Zealand’s 122. It is the first time in history that Wales have scored five tries against New Zealand. The tries: Williams, Lake, Griffin, James and Rees-Zammit for Wales; Ratima, Sititi, Fineanganofo and Lakai for New Zealand, all converted by Richie Mo’unga.
A 73-year wait ends
Wales last beat New Zealand 13-8 in Cardiff on 19 December 1953. Since then, they had lost 34 matches in a row to the All Blacks. That run is now over. James Botham, the Wales back row named man of the match, told ITV: “I can’t even describe the emotions. 1953 was the last time we beat the All Blacks.”
The scale of the shock is clear from Wales’s recent record. They had won only five of their 31 Tests since the last World Cup, all against teams outside the top 10. Coach Steve Tandy’s side had beaten Japan 28-21 the previous weekend. Nobody expected what happened in Cardiff on Saturday.
France also won in the same round of the Nations Championship, beating South Africa 21-19. England beat Japan 78-15, with Will Joseph scoring five tries, and Ireland beat Fiji 43-15.
What comes next
For Wales, the win is about far more than one result. It ends decades of hurt against New Zealand and gives the team a famous victory to build on. For the All Blacks, it is a rare defeat and a reminder that no record lasts forever.
Wales host Australia at the Principality Stadium on Saturday, 21 November, at 8.10pm in their next Nations Championship match. They will now believe they can beat anyone, while New Zealand will be desperate to bounce back. But whatever happens next, this match in Cardiff will be remembered as the night Wales finally beat the All Blacks again.
India Beat Pakistan by 1 Wicket in U19 Asia Cup Final Thriller was another famous win this weekend. Read more of our Sports coverage.
Sources: BBC Sport, Sky Sports, RugbyPass, All Blacks, The Guardian.
Comments (0)
Be respectful — comments are moderated.