The final word from coaches and players ahead of the All Blacks and Ireland quarter-final showdown at Stade de France in Paris. Video / Rugby World Cup Limited via SNTV
The All Blacks, the most successful team in Rugby World Cup history with three titles, are gearing up to face a resurgent Ireland side that has been holding the title of the world’s best for over a year.
The Southern Hemisphere has dominated the World Cup, winningeight out of nine tournaments and the previous four consecutively. New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa have claimed the titles, with England being the sole Northern Hemisphere nation to win in 2003. However, this year’s quarter-finals present an unprecedented opportunity for a major power shift in the north v south dynamic.
Wales and Argentina kick off the quarters at 4am (NZT) before the All Blacks take on the formidable Ireland at 8am in a rematch of the 2019 World Cup quarter-finals in Japan where New Zealand won 46-14.
The All Blacks, captained by Sam Cane, are aiming to bounce back from a challenging period over the past year and avoid what would be its equal-worst World Cup performance if defeated. On attack, the All Blacks have been at their devastating best this World Cup, scoring the most tries among the eight quarter-finalists with 38 tries at an average of 9.5 per game.
All Blacks coach Ian Foster made six changes to his starting XV from the 73-0 victory against Uruguay last week, with in-form Damian McKenzie dropping to the bench and Scott Barrett getting the nod over Sam Whitelock in the second row.
Ireland players celebrate the win in Wellington to claim the 2022 series. Photo / Photosport
Cane is joined by Ardie Savea and Shannon Frizell in the starting loose-forward trio. It will mark the first time they have run out together since the team’s 35-20 win over South Africa at Mount Smart. Loosehead prop Ethan de Groot has returned from suspension to join Codie Taylor and Tyrel Lomax in the front row. Their last-start together was in the team’s 38-7 win over Australia in Melbourne.
With a combined 1366 test caps worth of experience, the All Blacks have named an imposing lineup, featuring seasoned players like Whitelock, Cane, Aaron Smith, Beauden Barrett, and Richie Mo’unga. Leicester Fainga’anuku, who scored a hattrick against Namibia a couple of weeks ago, is set to make an impact on the left wing after replacing Mark Telea who was dropped for disciplinary reasons.
There are eight players in the match-day team who started all three tests against Ireland last year – Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett, Beauden Barrett, Brodie Retallick, Ardie Savea, Aaron Smith, Codie Taylor and captain Sam Cane. Jordie Barrett was the only All Black who played every minute of the series (240).
Will Jordan is on a three-game try-scoring streak against Ireland, crossing over in Dublin in 2021, and in Dunedin and Wellington in 2022. He has scored four tries in three games at the World Cup and 27 tries in 28 tests for the All Blacks since making his debut in 2020.
Meanwhile, Cane has won just one of his three tests against Ireland as captain. No All Blacks captain has ever lost more than two tests between the two sides.
Ireland, coached by Andy Farrell, has been a standout performer in recent times, currently enjoying a winning streak of 17 matches – a win would see them equal the most-ever record held by New Zealand and England. The team is eager to surpass their quarter-final record and make history, having reached them seven times but never winning.
There are 11 survivors from their RWC 2019 quarter-final loss to the All Blacks at Tokyo Stadium – Tadhg Furlong, James Ryan, Peter O’Mahony, Josh van der Flier, Iain Henderson, Conor Murray, Johnny Sexton, Garry Ringrose, Andrew Porter, Dave Kilcoyne, and Tadhg Beirne.
Farrell named an unchanged starting XV for the first time at the World Cup. The only two changes to the match-day team from last week’s victory against Scotland are on the bench, with Joe McCarthy replacing fellow lock James Ryan (injured) and Jimmy O’Brien replacing Stuart McCloskey.
Johnny Sexton will play his 15th test against the All Blacks for Ireland, and 18th overall including the British and Irish Lions. He will surpass Wales’ Alun Wyn Jones (17) for most tests by any northern hemisphere player against New Zealand. Meanwhile, if used off the bench, Conor Murray will surpass Brian O’Driscoll and Paul O’Connor for most World Cup games for Ireland in his 18th appearance.
The attack for Ireland has been just as impressive, if not better, than the All Blacks. Bundee Aki has been responsible for much of that, making a tournament-high 61 carries, 23 defenders beaten, and a team-high five offloads and nine line breaks. On the other side of the coin, in 2022 against the All Blacks, Josh van der Flier only missed one tackle making 66 of 67 attempts.
Lineups
All Blacks: 15 Beauden Barrett, 14 Will Jordan, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Jordie Barrett, 11 Leicester Fainga’anuku, 10 Richie Mo’unga, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Ardie Savea, 7 Sam Cane (captain), 6 Shannon Frizell, 5 Scott Barrett, 4 Brodie Retallick, 3 Tyrel Lomax, 2 Codie Taylor 1 Ethan de Groot. Reserves: 16 Dane Coles, 17 Tamaiti Williams, 18 Fletcher Newell, 19 Samuel Whitelock, 20 Dalton Papali’i, 21 Finlay Christie, 22 Damian McKenzie, 23 Anton Lienert-Brown
Ireland: 15Hugo Keenan, 14 Mack Hansen, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Jonathan Sexton (captain), 9 Jamison Gibson-Park; 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 Iain Henderson, 4 Tadhg Beirne, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter. Reserves: 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Joe McCarthy, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Jack Crowley, 23 Jimmy O’Brien.
Luke Kirkness is an Online Sports Editor for the NZ Herald. He previously covered consumer affairs for the Herald and was an assistant news director in the Bay of Plenty. He won Student Journalist of the Year in 2019.
