England grind out victory over All Blacks

9.25pm

UPDATE - England drew on all their reserves of courage to down the All Blacks 15-13 in a drama-filled rugby test at Westpac Stadium in Wellington tonight.

The tourists played with 13 men for 10 minutes early in the second half while loose forwards Lawrence Dallaglio and Neil Back were in the sinbin, yet kept the All Blacks scoreless in a magnificent defensive effort.

The boot of Jonny Wilkinson scored all of England's 15 points, potting four penalties from five attempts and a drop-goal midway through the second half, which lifted them to a decisive 15-6 lead.

All Blacks fullback Doug Howlett scored the game's only try soon afterwards in controversial circumstances but it wasn't enough for the hosts, with the game going scoreless over the final 20 minutes.

It handed England a record 12th consecutive test win and their first on New Zealand soil in 30 years.

The error-riddled New Zealanders will have plenty to work on ahead of next Saturday's test against Wales in Hamilton after a disappointing start to their 2003 campaign.

England deserved to win the tight, physical contest dominated by the whistle of Australian referee Stuart Dickinson, making less errors than the All Blacks and making more of their opportunities.

Dickinson handed out more than 30 penalties.

Using the blueprint that has them rated real World Cup threats, their forwards played a tight, controlled game and they defended superbly. The All Blacks' individual game-breakers struggled to make inroads, with only first five-eighth Carlos Spencer able to break the line.

However, Spencer's goalkicking was a problem area, he kicked just two penalties from six attempts.

The game never rose to great heights as a spectacle despite clear conditions and a firm field.

Swirling winds created problems with kicking and passing in general play.

The scores were locked 6-6 after a disappointing first half but it came to life early in the second spell when both Back and Dallaglio were shown yellow cards for persistent infringing at the ruck.

Dickinson had warned both teams about constant professional fouls.

Soon afterwards the game's key moment came when All Blacks No 8 Rodney So'oialo was ruled to have made a double movement after taking a quick tap near the try line.

The first half was a disappointing affair considering the two highest-ranked teams in the world were near full strength.

The All Blacks conceded four penalties in the opening four minutes, one of which resulted in three points to Wilkinson, but largely had the better of the opening 40 minutes.

They camped for long periods in the English half, mostly through a lop-sided penalty count in their favour, but struggled to crack the visitors' disciplined defence.

Spencer suffered his first penalty miss in the ninth minute but was successful four minutes later.

With Wilkinson's territorial kicking game below par, New Zealand swung back onto attack, twice opting to kick for touch from penalties rather than for goal.

Spencer created three try-scoring opportunities, all of which were thwarted by scrambling England defence.

Wilkinson kicked England clear with two penalties and a drop-goal before Howlett chased 50m to score from a Spencer tactical kick.

Replays showed he was offside at the kick but the try was awarded.

England now cross the Tasman to face Australia in Melbourne next Saturday.

England coach Clive Woodward was delighted with the courage his players showed

"That was the best defensive performance we have put in," he said.

"The game didn't come alive in an attacking way, but defensively we were magnificent."

Woodward said the 10-minute period when they were two men down was crucial.

"(Captain) Martin Johnson was brilliant at the point. He held his nerves when we needed it, it was a period when we were falling apart."

Woodward said the result was all the more satisfying after having coached the 1998 England side who were hammered in two tests in New Zealand.

"That tour was one of the low points, today was one of the high points." said Woodward, who believed tonight's result was a psychological boost for his team ahead of the World Cup.

"If we meet these guys again we'd be confident we would beat them, we've now beaten them twice in a row."

"We had our chances but England didn't let us get any flow going,"All Blacks captain Reuben Thorne said.

"Every time we got together a couple of phases, they got into us and we turned it over.

"They put us under pressure and moved their defensive line up very quickly."

All Blacks coach John Mitchell congratulated England on their victory, saying they made better use of their opportunities.

"There were a lot of encouraging signs but unfortunately we lacked cohesion, we've learned the hard way."

When asked the difference between the two teams, Mitchell singled out the kicking of Wilkinson.

"Jonny's kicking boot wasn't bad, was it?

"He's an outstanding goalkicker."

All Blacks assistant coach Robbie Deans said the side lacked composure in the closing stages as they sought the winner.

Halfback Justin Marshall left the game with a hamstring injury but Mitchell said it was too early to ascertain the extent of the injury.

However, a backup halfback is likely to be called in tomorrow or Monday to prepare for the match against Wales, and Otago's Byron Kelleher and Auckland's David Gibson are the leading candidates.



- NZPA