All Blacks halfback Aaron Smith celebrates a scrum win during the Bledisloe Cup/Rugby Championship. Photo: PhotoSport / Brett Phibbs
The All Blacks have notched up another win in their record-breaking run at Eden Park, defeating Australia 40-14 in Auckland tonight.
A clinical All Blacks display ensured a largely one-sided return match after last week's thrilling first Bledisloe Cup test -
They scored five tries to two in front of a sold out crowd of 47,000 - extending a Wallabies winless streak at Eden Park going back to 1986.
The Wallabies, who had a mathematical shot at the title going into the match, reprised their boomerang response to the haka but otherwise fell well short of the standards they set in last week's 39-37 loss to the All Blacks in Melbourne.
New Zealand led 17-0 at half-time, with Will Jordan dotting down for a try in the 23rd minute, followed five minutes later by a penalty try when the All Blacks went for a lineout drive and it was pulled down illegally.
Two Australian players were given yellow cards in the first half. Lock Jed Holloway was shown a yellow card in the third minute for a dangerous clean-out and the visitors were back to 15 men for only four minutes before Dave Porecki was sent to cool his heels for 10 minutes after collapsing the rolling maul.
Sam Whitelock was perhaps fortunate to be awarded the third try just after the break as he wrestled with Angus Bell for the ball under the posts, but there was no denying Codie Taylor's score in the 54th minute on the back of a juggernaut of a rolling maul.
All Black Will Jorden scores a try against the Wallabies. Photo: Andrew Cornaga / www.photosport.nz
Australia got its first points on the board in the 58th minute, when the Wallabies pounced on a charge-down in New Zealand's 22 and Folau Fainga'a scored.
New Zealand then countered with a Samisoni Taukei'aho try in the 65th minute, and Jordan Petaia scored a consolation try for the Wallabies in the dying seconds of the match.
"Really, really happy with the defence (and) it was nice to put some good moments on moments there," said lock Sam Whitelock.
"That's what we've been trying to do all the time and it's nice when it starts to happen."
The All Blacks have not lost at Eden Park since 1994.
All Blacks player Will Jorden during the New Zealand All Blacks v Australia Wallabies Bledisloe Cup and 2022 Rugby Championship match at Eden Park. Photo: Andrew Cornaga / www.photosport.nz
Australia never looked like breaking their 36-year winless streak against the All Blacks at the venue.
"Two yellow cards in the first half really put us on the back foot," said captain James Slipper.
"That's a very disappointing outcome for us. Far too much dropped ball and too many penalties put us under pressure. It just wasn't good enough."
The victory means the Springboks will also need to secure a bonus point and beat Argentina by at least 39 points in the final match of the championship in Durban tomorrow morning to take the title back to South Africa.
Earlier, the Black Ferns thumped Japan 95-12 in their final match before the World Cup starts in New Zealand in two weeks time.
See how all the action unfolded with RNZ's live blog here
- RNZ / Reuters