Bledisloe Cup 2014: Score and Recap for Qantas Wallabies vs. All Blacks Game 3
Late drama say New Zealand clinch a vital victory in Game 3 of the Bledisloe Cup on Saturday, overcoming bitter rivals Australia 29-28 in a thrilling match at the Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane.
Having eased to victory in Game 2 of the series back in August in Auckland, the All Blacks came into the match full of confidence, but it was the hosts that flew out of the traps.
With 12 minutes on the clock, Nick Phipps went over after neat work from Israel Folau from the 60 to draw first blood.
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It was nothing more than the Wallabies deserved after dominated the opening exchanges, but all it really succeeded in doing was waking New Zealand up from their Saturday slumber.
A poor defensive line allowed Kieran Read to break through, and he then set up Cory Jane to go over in the corner—as fanatix’s video shows:
Beauden Barrett added the extras impressively to make it 7-7, and it was quickly becoming apparent that a thriller was in prospect.
The teams battled valiantly as half time loomed, and Dane Coles dotted down after a Bernard Foley try to make it 12-10 to the visitors.
However, Foley then had his moment in the limelight, as he saw a metre on the blindside of an All Black ruck and pounced brilliantly, sending Australia in at half time 15-12 ahead—and it certainly meant a lot to him, per the Wallabies’ official Twitter account:
It gave the hosts the momentum that they so sorely needed, and they visibly came out in the second half pumped and ready to go, taking just four minutes to cross the line once again.
This time is was Adam Ashley-Cooper doing the damage in the right corner, and at 22-12, it looked like the Aussies were going to go on to chalk up a famous victory.
Foley and Barrett penalties saw the scores at 25-15 with just 12 minutes remaining on the clock, before one of the most remarkable spells of Test rugby played out.
An Aaron Smith try swiftly followed by a Barrett conversion made it 25-22 to give the All Blacks a glimmer of hope, but a Nic White penalty handed the hosts a six-point lead at 28-22.
However, White then became the villain, as his decision to kick rather than hang on to the pill invited more pressure on the Wallabies’ line, and with just seconds remaining, Malakai Fekitoa went over to give the visitors a huge chance of glory.
Fekitoa wasn’t having the best of games, but he provided the goods when it mattered, handing Colin Slade the chance to convert for the victory at 28-27, which he duly did.
The pandemonium that followed was only fitting for a Test match of such explosive calibre, reiterating the point that you can simply never write off the All Blacks. And BBC Sport’s Jason Mohammad believes that there’s a lot to learn from the Kiwi stars:
The All Blacks’ next match is against the USA on November 2 as part of their end-of-year tour, and they’ll be looking to keep up their momentum with next year’s World Cup looming.
It’s the Aussies that will be taking endless positives from the match, though, and as they prepare to face the Barbarians in London on November 1, they can hold their heads high.
However, as reported after the match, Qantas Wallabies will have a new coach next time around:
The two home ties of the Bledisloe Cup have seen the Wallabies run New Zealand perilously close to defeat, and they can now move into the new year full of confidence for their next crack at taking down the kings.
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