Codie Taylor of New Zealand scores the opening try at Murrayfield in Edinburgh.
Camera IconCodie Taylor of New Zealand scores the opening try at Murrayfield in Edinburgh. Credit: Getty Images

All Blacks beat Scotland 22-17 in Murrayfield rugby Test thriller

Daniel Gilhooly, AAPNews Corp Australia

THE All Blacks have relied on flashes of brilliance and desperate defence to see off Scotland 22-17 in a gripping Test in Edinburgh.

Led by emerging star winger Rieko Ioane, the world champions held out an audacious Scottish assault on Saturday (Sunday AEDT), roared on by a deafening Murrayfield crowd.

The hosts dominated the opening 30 minutes and threatened a historic second-half revival but couldn’t stop New Zealand notching their fourth successive tour win.

Tries to Codie Taylor and Damian McKenzie soon after the break gave the All Blacks an element of control, having been flattered by the 3-3 halftime score.

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But final-quarter yellow cards to flanker Sam Cane and prop Wyatt Crockett opened the door for a late Scottish comeback and a potential maiden win over New Zealand.

The match had a dramatic finish when outstanding Scotland fullback Stuart Hogg — a constant thorn in the Kiwis’ side — scorched towards the tryline, but lost the ball forward in a desperate tackle from Beauden Barrett.

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Hogg’s enormous influence was matched by that of the 20-year-old Rieko Ioane, whose match statistics read five clean breaks, eight beaten defenders and three offloads, bettering every other player on the park.

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His performance shone in an otherwise patchy All Blacks team, who were shaded in the enthusiasm stakes by world No 6 Scotland.

The Scots largely had the better of the breakdown and held their own at the set-piece, but couldn’t finish a number of excellent attacking opportunities.

It was the All Blacks’ 10th win in 13 Tests this year but, like most of them, they did it the hard way.

As with last week’s 38-18 win over France in Paris, discipline was a problem, conceding 16 penalties along with the yellow cards.

After living without the ball for the first 30 minutes and conceding an early Finn Russell penalty goal, the visitors slowly established a foothold in the Test and levelled the scores through a Barrett penalty near halftime.

Scotland players react after losing to New Zealand at Murrayfield.
Camera IconScotland players react after losing to New Zealand at Murrayfield. Credit: Getty Images

The match’s most contentious moment came midway through the first spell when Hogg leapt for a high ball, making heavy contact with Waisake Naholo on the way down.

The crowd demanded a serious sanction against the All Blacks winger but television match official David Grashoff deemed the offence only worthy of a penalty.

Ioane’s influence was encapsulated soon after the break when he claimed a high kick, shrugged off two defenders and broke clear.

He then rejoined play and threw a cut-out pass to put hooker Taylor across.

New Zealand pushed 12 points clear when Sonny Bill Williams set up a try from a pinpoint grubber kick for the second time in two Tests, finding McKenzie.

Scotland found a second wind when Gray stretched out to score, but Barrett’s clincher put the match beyond their reach and rendered Huw Jones’ try futile.

New Zealand’s last fixture of a 16-match season is against Wales next week.

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