Dalton Papali'i was the best of the All Blacks against Scotland. Photosport
Dalton Papali'i was the best of the All Blacks against Scotland. Photosport
How the All Blacks performed in their 31-23 comeback win over Scotland in Murrayfield.
15: Jordie Barrett — 6
Not as effective after being shifted to fullback. Clever assist with the crossfield for opening Telea try. Should be moved back into the midfield. Three turnovers. Quietly becoming a very reliablegoal kicker.
14: Mark Telea — 7
A debut that should earn him another test in the black jersey (the proper one not the All Blacks XV). Scored two tries, though to be fair he didn’t have to do much for either but made plenty of strong runs including three clean breaks.
Mark Telea celebrates with teammates after scoring his team's fourth try. Photo / Getty
13: Anton Lienert-Brown — 6
Needless yellow card and penalty try for the off-the-ball tackle on Hogg which helped spark the Scottish turnaround. Did make a crucial turnover penalty to quell a Scottish attack late in the test. Got better as the test went on but far from his best test form.
Heavy defensive effort but showed little on attack. Threw a crucial intercept for Scotland’s second try that saw them level the game. Got a bit lost in Edinburgh, which many Kiwis who’ve attended Hogmanay can relate to.
11: Caleb Clarke — 6
Way more involved this week which was expected. Involvement was helped by the Scots kicking the ball to him. Still not convinced he should have the starting spot at Twickenham.
10: Beauden Barrett — 6
Was a chance to at least question whether Richie Mo’unga is the right choice at No 10, but only helped convince that he belongs at 15 at this stage of his career. An uninspiring kicking game but was willing to run, just wasn’t able to break the line. A Barrett playing in the wrong jersey is a theme.
9: Finlay Christie — 6
Impressed early on but made a crucial mistake near the line as part of his two turnovers. Outshone by his replacement.
Back-to-back big tests. His form in Europe is starting to create a bit of a quandary for when Sam Cane returns to the international fold next season. The trio were tried in the second test against Ireland this year and that didn’t work out well. Is he doing enough to force the skipper out? A big game next weekend might do it. He was the best on the (Murray) field racking up 14 tackles along with winning a penalty and a few turnovers
6: Akira Ioane — 5
Won an important penalty turnover. Was strong in leadup to the second Telea try. Didn’t do much on defence with three missed tackles.
5: Scott Barrett — 6
Big defensive effort and a deft move to cut back in and score the go-ahead try. Reliable at the lineout, but didn’t jump out in other aspects. Likely to step aside or back to flanker for Retallick this week.
4: Sam Whitelock — 6
Penalised a few times including a neck-roll tackle. Second most tackles for the All Blacks. Along with Barrett, did a lot of good clean-out work in the first 20 minutes when the All Blacks dominated.
3: Nepo Laulala — 6
The scrum didn’t exactly dominate but you can’t just pin that on the front row. Was heavily involved in the early stages.
2: Samisoni Taukei’aho — 7
Another solid outing. Nine runs and 10 tackles. And scored another driving-maul try in a nice nod to England’s failed Women’s World Cup campaign.
1: Ethan De Groot — 5
Not as strong as last week. Like many of the tight five, started well as they dominated the breakdowns but struggled as Scotland began to hit back.
Reserves:
16: Codie Taylor — 6
Strong performance off the bench. Earned turnover and continued strong runs for the hookers.
17: George Bower — 4
Penalty at scrum handed Scotland three points. The unwanted stat of more tackles missed than made (1-0).
18: Fletcher Newell — 5
Was in the action but didn’t do anything to stand out. Seemed at odds with referee’s decisions at scrumtime.
19: Tupou Vaa’i — 5
Only nine minutes on the field.
20: Shannon Frizell — 6
A stronger appearance than Ioane whom he replaced.
21: TJ Perenara — 7
Experienced head was excellent at commanding the troops after arriving with side down 23-14. Proved he’s still a reliable option at test level.
22: Stephen Perofeta — 5
Got to kick the ball into touch, twice for his one minute of work.
22: Rieko Ioane — 6
Brief appearance but did make a noticeable run beating two defenders and also assisted the second Telea try.
