NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Sport / Rugby / All Blacks

Rugby: How the players rated in the All Blacks' 2019 Rugby World Cup warm-up win over Tonga

Christopher Reive
By Christopher Reive
Senior Sports Journalist·NZ Herald·
7 Sep, 2019 05:15 AM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

All Black Ardie Savea is tackled against Tonga. Photo / Dean Purcell.

All Black Ardie Savea is tackled against Tonga. Photo / Dean Purcell.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

How the players rated in the All Blacks' 92-7 win over Tonga.

All Blacks

Ben Smith - 7

Made his impact on attack exclusively, got the ball with no one in front of him a few times and made the most of the space.

Sevu Reece - 7

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Whether he was scoring tries or setting them up, Reece's speed and power were too much for the Tongan defence.

Anton Lienert-Brown - 8

Put in a characteristically strong performance at both ends of the park, providing a platform for his teammates.

Ryan Crotty - 6

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It wasn't a spectacular return to the black jersey, but the All Blacks stalwart was solid in a 65-minute stint.

George Bridge - 9

Discover more

Rugby World Cup

All Blacks prove to be big business at World Cup camp base

07 Sep 05:00 PM
All Blacks

Phil Gifford: How to fix the 'basic' NZ gameday experience

05 Sep 10:00 PM
All Blacks

Gregor Paul: The decision 'haunting' coaches ahead of World Cup

06 Sep 03:00 AM
All Blacks

Paul Lewis: All Blacks 'cynical cheats?' Yea right...

06 Sep 10:39 PM

Had plenty of opportunity to flash his attacking prowess and did just that, beating defenders and bagging a bunch of tries.

George Bridge scored four tries against Tonga. Photo / Dean Purcell.
George Bridge scored four tries against Tonga. Photo / Dean Purcell.

Beauden Barrett - 6

Good distribution from the hands but he struggled to find the range with his in-play kicking game.

TJ Perenara - 7

Given plenty of time by the Tongan defence, Perenara made the right passes and took on the defence when he could.

Kieran Read - 7

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Was happy to run the football when needed to, made his tackles and worked hard around the breakdown.

Matt Todd - 6

Conceded a couple of turnovers but was otherwise solid across the park. Scored from a nice lineout play.

Ardie Savea - 9

Made his presence felt across the paddock securing turnovers, making strong tackles and running the ball well.

Ardie Savea was strong across the park against Tonga. Photo / Dean Purcell
Ardie Savea was strong across the park against Tonga. Photo / Dean Purcell

Sam Whitelock - 6

Made his mark at set pieces but otherwise struggled to get involved both on attack and defensively.

Patrick Tuipulotu - 7

Flashed his passing game with some key offloads and made his fair share of tackles; got stuck into his work at the ruck.

Nepo Laulala - 6

Strong at set pieces and in the gritty areas of the play, Laulala helped provide the platform for the backs to launch off of.

Codie Taylor - 8

One of the game's busiest players. Made plenty of tackles, was strong at set pieces and impacted the attack.

Joe Moody - 7

Did plenty of work at the breakdown and was a willing ball runner, though his impact was limited as the backs dominated.

Reserves: Liam Coltman - 5, Ofa Tuungafasi - 5, Angus Ta'avao - 5, Scott Barrett - 6, Luke Jacobson - 6, Aaron Smith - 5, Josh Ioane - 8, Jordie Barrett - 5.

Tonga

David Halaifonua - 6

Given the limited opportunities, he made the most of his time with the ball and generally took the right option.

Cooper Vuna - 3

Poor defensive effort on a number of occasions which the All Blacks took advantage of. Couldn't get involved on attack.

Mali Hingano - 4

His defence was exploited throughout the match, missing more tackles than he made. Had next to no chances on attack.

Siale Piutau - 6

Tried hard for his side when he got the ball in his hands and when he was called upon in defence. Scored a try.

Viliami Lolohea - 5

Did what he could to slow down the All Blacks' attack and with ball in hand, but conceded a couple of turnovers.

Matt Todd is tackled. Photo / Dean Purcell.
Matt Todd is tackled. Photo / Dean Purcell.

Kurt Morath - 4

Generally took the right option on attack, but struggled to find away to make an impact in the other areas of the game.

Tane Takulua - 6

Tried to get the attack going with good ball distribution from the back of the ruck; made his tackles.

Ma'ama Vaipul - 5

Broke the line and gave the All Blacks' defence one of few real tests in the game. Discipline let him down a bit.

Fotu Lokotui - 5

Muscled up on defence and tried hard at the breakdown. Didn't have any opportunity to influence the attack.

Sione Kalamafoni - 6

Tried to give his team's attack some life with a strong running game and was another to rack up a tackle count.

Leva Fifita - 5

Did some work at the breakdown and made a few tackles but otherwise failed to assert himself into the match.

Sam Lousi - 3

Misjudged a restart which led to an All Blacks try; was sin-binned for a dangerous tackle. Made plenty of tackles.

Siua Halanukonuka - 4

Spent the majority of his outing getting stuck into the breakdown and was otherwise rarely sighted.

Siua Maile - 5

Failed to have much of an impact on the game as the All Blacks backline tore his side apart, but tried with ball in hand.

Siegfried Fisi'ihoi - 6

Much like Halanukonuka, he spent most of his time working around the ruck, but was more effective defensively.

Reserves: Sione Anga'aelangi - 5, Vunipola Fifita - 6, Ma'afu Fia - 6, Dan Faleafa - 5, Zane Kapeli - 5, Leon Fukofuka - 6, James Faiva - 6, Afa Pakalani - 5.

Love your rugby? Click here to subscribe to our new Premium newsletter for extensive Rugby World Cup coverage.

Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from All Blacks

All Blacks

All Blacks captain says inexperienced French team will ‘fire everything at us’

04 Jul 06:23 AM
Premium
All Blacks

Why switching Ioane and Vaa'i could redefine All Blacks' strategy

03 Jul 06:01 PM
All Blacks

France name eight newcomers to face All Blacks

03 Jul 05:39 PM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from All Blacks

All Blacks captain says inexperienced French team will ‘fire everything at us’

All Blacks captain says inexperienced French team will ‘fire everything at us’

04 Jul 06:23 AM

Eight uncapped players have been selected in the French side for the first test.

Premium
Why switching Ioane and Vaa'i could redefine All Blacks' strategy

Why switching Ioane and Vaa'i could redefine All Blacks' strategy

03 Jul 06:01 PM
France name eight newcomers to face All Blacks

France name eight newcomers to face All Blacks

03 Jul 05:39 PM
All Blacks v France: All you need to know

All Blacks v France: All you need to know

03 Jul 05:20 PM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP