Australia 21-43 New Zealand: Bledisloe Cup rugby union international – as it happened

Thank you for joining me this afternoon. That concludes our winter and spring international rugby season on this particular page. I’ll leave you with Jack Snape’s on-the-whistle match report form Accor Stadium, and bid you farewell. The Wallabies lived up to pre-match fears that an increasingly threadbare squad had reached breaking point. Only Max Jorgensen emerged with any great credit from a performance that lacked cohesion in both attack and defence. Isaac Henry, Harry Potter and Declan Meredith all had their moments, but they also indicated they are not the players capable of beating the All Blacks on a dry track when both teams are committed to running the ball. For the half an hour before the interval there was a real lack of leadership and presence in gold, which Les Kiss will be keen to fix before next year’s world cup. In the first half, when the game was live, the All Blacks were imperious. Their back row monstered the Wallabies, setting up quick ball for McKenzie to have a day out with. For the second week running he was excellent, feeding his runners with precision, keeping the defensive line on the move, and pulling the correct rein when a score was in sight. Beauden Barrett remains top class, Josh Moorby was excellent, and Rieko Ioane coming off the bench is the very definition of strength in depth. Their 37 points to half-time flattered Australia. “I’m surrounded by a great bunch of men who make my job easy,” purrs Cody Taylor. “Not good enough,” admits Harry Wilson. “We’ve got to start better, we can’t get that far behind the All Blacks.” He credits the effort late on but bemoans it as “too little too late.” The second half of that contest will not live long in the memory. Credit to Australia for digging in, but this afternoon was all about that scintillating first-40 effort from the All Blacks. The All Blacks extend their winning streak over the Wallabies to 13 matches. It’s a run that doesn’t look like ending any time soon. 79 mins: The 13-man All Blacks slow the game down, milk the phases, and run down the clock. 78 mins: Despite playing against just 13 men the Wallabies lack the direction to engineer space. It’s little surprise when the ball goes to ground after Henry tried to feed Canham through a keyhole. 77 mins: Australia get to work in attacking territory, but it’s slow disconnected phase play. Suaalii stood up Fihaki one on one on the left wing. The debutant executed the tackle, but he didn’t get particularly low, so when the two men clashed heads it left the TMO and on-field referee little room to manoeuvre. The All Blacks will see off the game with just 13 players. 76 mins: There’s another long TMO intervention, this time scrutinising an All Black tackle that could have collected Suaalii in the head. 75 mins: It’s not crisp but it is effective as offloads and hopeful passes keep finding their targets before McLaughlin-Phillips makes another impressive dash – but he loses in contact on the ground and the All Blacks can take a breather. 74 mins: The All Blacks put their heads down and bums up inside their own half to grind the game down. Then the bomb goes up, it’s contested and Australia are forced to scramble near their 22. Harry McLaughlin-Phillips does well with his first carry as the Wallabies resume their last ditch efforts. 73 mins: Harry McLaughlin-Phillips is now a Test rugby international. 72 mins: Another shonky All Black lineout, this time picked off by Williams. Daugunu reaches halfway on the counter on the right before the ball goes through hands to the left. Australia are desperate to run deep lines but New Zealand’s defence is up too quickly to shut down any space. The Wallabies are determined to keep the ball alive at all costs and that makes for some funky passes, and clunky bobbles. Jorgensen almost pierces the line on the right, then Meredith through the middle, the latter supported by Wilson, who is stopped in his tracks and play returns to an earlier advantage. 71 mins: 14-man New Zealand take their time in possession, milking the clock, and they’re gifted a penalty by Daugunu who ignores the instructions of the referee to continue playing on the ground when warned not to. 70 mins: Can Australia inject some life into things? That’s a hard no. From behind the scrum Meredith engages the line then misses his burst runner. 69 mins: Awful lineout fumble on a short throw by the All Blacks. The tension in this contest has evaporated into the western Sydney sky. This is typified by New Zealand being forced to play with just 14 after spending all their replacements. … and that desperation is rewarded handsomely! Wright takes a cheeky short drop-out that catches New Zealand unawares. Suddenly there are gold jerseys flooding forward at speed with the All Blacks miles out of position. Daugunu almost scores on the initial play, but he won’t be denied on the second phase. This has been a commendable effort from Australia in the past 20 minutes. 66 mins: The lineout is solid, the maul forms, and from it Taukei’aho shears off like a ricocheting bullet, but as he crosses the line there are three gold jerseys holding him up! Superb desperation from the Australian defenders. 65 mins: New Zealand are awarded an offside penalty near halfway that invites them to kick towards the left corner. Play has now been recalled all the way back to Meredith’s near-try by the TMO! This is a crazy intervention, miles after the incident. He thinks Roigard committed foul play by kicking the ball out of Meredith’s hands in the act of scoring the try. He clearly didn’t. Thankfully Luke Pearce is on top of it all, handles the situation superbly, and communicates calmly to both skippers. Magnificent on-field refereeing, awful intervention by the TMO. 64 mins: Australia come again from halfway. Suaalii sets it up with an ambitious looping pass. Jorgensen toes ahead and regathers. Then he kicks again, but he’s tackled in the process so there’s no gold jersey to chase the black defenders. In broken field New Zealand counter and Roigard is suddenly so far ahead of his colleagues in space he practically stops to invite support runners to join him. They come on the left and two passes later it’s B Barrett v Meredith on the left wing one-on-one. Barrett kicks ahead – but Meredith wins the chase, then does enough on the ground to avoid conceding the penalty! Brilliant defence from the No 10 just seconds after he was denied a try. 62 mins: Australia get another opportunity to run out of their 22 behind a scrum. Daugunu hits the line hard, Bell supports quickly, Canham is effective, then Meredith is through! He only has Moorby to beat! He jinks one way, then the other, the try line approaching, he’s scragged, but his momentum carries him over the line – then as he reaches out to touch down the pill is knocked from his grasp! Agonising for the No 10. 60 mins: Another Australian attack comes to nought before it has chance to bed in. The TV coverage has shown Wright’s anguished face repeatedly today with the fullback failing to dovetail with his outside back colleagues coming out of defence Meanwhile, behind play, Shannon Frizell goes down with nobody near him. The big forward hasn’t been on long but his day might already be done with some kind of leg injury. 57 mins: Finally some momentum for the hosts. Canham is powerful up the guts, McReight is busy, and halfway is breached with gusto. But then it all falls apart as the New Zealand defence rushes up with menace, forcing ball carriers backwards. Daugunu finds himself in quicksand, as does De Lutiis and a promising move ebbs away. The eventual kick down the right channel is allowed to bobble out of play. Australia infringe at the lineout and the visitors kick clear. Wilson picks up the ball behind an unconvincing scrum and Australia lose territory as their midfield stalls. Finally Jorgensen injects some magic with a jinking run down the right to set up front foot ball on the 22. Finally the backs connect: Meredith to Suaalii, to Potter – who is hauled down inches short, but Wright follows up and dives over in the corner. After a long period on the back foot, finally something for Sydneysiders to celebrate. That was all about the excellence of Max Jorgensen on the right wing. Lonergan slots over a very good conversion to provide another reason to cheer. 53 mins: Sititi smashes another chink in the gold armour allowing Fihaki to canter into open field. Inexplicably he leaves the ball behind attempting to grubber on the 22 and Australia can counter. Lonergan runs the ball the other way but there’s no connection and both teams have a little breather. The edge has gone out of this contest somewhat. It’s now just a matter of how many points the All Blacks can pour on if they remain disciplined enough. 52 mins: Wilson taps and runs from halfway but gets flattened. The ball comes out slowly to the left but there’s a handling. The Wallabies look absolutely shot. They look a full weight division outmatched here. 50 mins: New Zealand feed a scrum on the 22. Lakai drills his way into the gold line, Moorby follows up, but he can’t recycle and Lonergan and Tizzano complete a well-executed turnover. Dave Rennie replaces his entire front row in one fell swoop. 47 mins: New Zealand grind their way through the phases in their own half. Tavatavanawai puts a dint in the line on the right, allowing McKenzie to showcase his quick hands on the inside and set runners away on the left. Play stalls by the 22 but phases 12 and 13 are solid with S Barrett and Sititi throwing their weight around. Finally, about three minutes into the drive, there’s a loose pass to the left and the attack finally runs out of road. That might be the first time New Zealand have mounted a purposeful attack without scoring all match. 44 mins: The All Blacks have been irresistible going forward but Australia’s defence has been abject. They are staring down back-to-back 50-point shellackings. Williams is back on the field and he wins lineout ball near halfway. Henry is strong to accept contact, then Bell shoves his way over the gainline. It’s slow from the Wallabies as New Zealand force them backwards and it’s no surprise when an errant pass from behind the ruck lands in front of Salakaia-Loto and the All Blacks counter at pace! Lakai is devastating on the burst into broken field. McKenzie enforces the squeeze with a kick in behind that’s recovered his side’s way. As phases build Moorby threads the eye of a needle on the left wing, dummying dramatically, then slipping along the touchline and in at the corner. McKenzie piles on even more points. 41 mins: We’re back under way in Sydney. The All Blacks are very very good with ball in hand. Australia are being reminded of their place in the international rugby pecking order. Australia claim the dropout and mount another siege. With the half-time siren approaching they cut to the right, but it’s all bit slow and too close to the defensive line. Suaalii offloads under pressure high to Jorgensen, who attempts to keep the ball moving, but his next move is telegraphed, Beauden Barrett reads it, plucks the simple interception, then runs 90m virtually unopposed to rubber stamp his team’s dominance. McKenzie just about adds two more points. 39 mins: The lineout is solid, the maul forms, but it’s undermanned and the All Blacks hold it up. Australia head infield with Wilson and Nasser shoving the gainline inches forward. McReight picks the ball off the floor of the ruck and launches himself over bodies like an NFL running back on fourth and one – but he’s held up and New Zealand survive. 38 mins: The All Blacks concede an offside penalty in possession allowing Australia to kick to the right corner. Can they capitalise? 37 mins: Australia secure lineout ball and invite Valetini to bulldoze into the black wall. The Wallabies recycle but quickly run out of room on the right with Potter throwing an errant pass. 36 mins: From the halfway scrum New Zealand run to the right but lack cohesion and Meredith does well to win the turnover on the ground. 34 mins: Meredith’s short kick-off doesn’t carry 10m. 14-man Australia are drowning, not waving. The All Blacks could run up a cricket score at this rate. From 5 metres out, No 8 Sititi just picks the ball up at the base of the scrum and runs over unopposed with Lonergan blindsided. Goodness me that was too easy. Sititi hammers through the line and Wright has to deal with a black jersey with momentum bearing down on him Wright yet again. The fullback holds his own but from the breakdown there’s a cynical offside call against Williams for preventing a clear try-scoring opportunity and it’s hero to zero for the big lock who is sent to the bin for ten minutes. 31 mins: A loose carry coming out of defence following the restart suggests Australia’s resurgence may be short lived. Australia mount their first decent sortie in 20 minutes with quick ball, plenty of offloads and onrushing support runners. 10m out there’s a high shot on Wright which creates an advantage on the drive that invites confidence in the ball movement. With a glimmer of space to run into, Williams charges into the hole and crosses for a much needed score. Lonergan adds the easy extras. Is it game on again? 26 mins: The All Blacks are offloading at will, failing to make any errors in possession, and running the Australian defence off its feet. McKenzie is running the show from five-eighth. New Zealand steal a gold throw on halfway and get back to work. Sititi takes some punishment, then Ionae relishes contact. Sititi has a second go as the 22 draws near. Scott Barrett draws in bodies then McKenzie is thrilling on a wraparound play to create space on the left edge like a conjurer. That was glorious. Space created, Jordan draws in the covering winger, allowing Ioane an armchair ride to the left corner. This is an absolute clinic. Another shocking kick from McKenzie keeps the scoreline almost respectable. 23 mins: Another overhit bomb is marked by McKenzie and a promising Australian attack is stopped in his tracks. Tupaea’s teammates are having fun in the sun though. Lakai has been huge, enabling Roigard to make a dart. McKenzie slips through the line and almost wriggles his hips beyond Wright but the fullback stands tall. 5m out and another try seems inevitable. Holland is canny to overhand pass to Taylor. The support runners are everywhere, bodies in motion, left, right, and Lakai down the centre! Brilliant. For the third time today once New Zealand got a head of steam up they appeared impossible to deny. Australia’s early ascendancy seems light years ago. McKenzie finally connects with a conversion and the lead is up to 17. 19 mins: Quinn Tupaea’s day lasted just 90 seconds. The All Black centre has failed his HIA. The Wallabies are committed to their garryowens but Meredith’s latest is too deep for his chasers. Jordan has a punt of his own, then it’s Wright’s turn – neither team seems overly keen to run the ball – until Moorby has a dash and sets up front-foot ball. From a quick ruck Lakai rushes between Nasser and McReight, and from thereon there is a sense of inevitability about the outcome. Two phases later there is no surprise to see Beauden Barrett crashing over one-out. When the All Blacks turn it on, they really turn it on. McKenzie misses again off the tee. Two pretty gettable conversions attempts wasted. 16 mins: Another opportunity goes begging for the Wallabies as the attacking lineout is knocked forward and New Zealand can belt clear to halfway. 15 mins: Suaalii wins the kick-off and Australia can attack. Valetini is strong in contact, as is Salakaia-Loto. There’s a knock-on against an All Black coming out to lay a tackle so the Wallabies go through hands to the left. It’s quick and crisp again with Jorgensen injecting pace. This time he finds Potter on his outside, but as the winger steps infield he’s shut down and the advantage is taken. New Zealand’s kicking game has been poor early. McKenzie is the latest to miss his mark with an attempted dink over the top and Australia can clear. The All Blacks come again through Beauden Barrett then Lakai as a platform is built on the centre spot. McKenzie straightens and finds the offload to up the intensity. A second offload sees the black jerseys swarm inside the 22. 10 phases becomes 11 with Scott Barrett carrying into contact before brother Beauden almost blitzes through the defensive line! 5m out it all starts to get a little scrappy. There’s almost an overlap on the right but everything becomes too tight. Play returns infield, there’s a penalty advantage, the gold line is fractured, Jorgensen rushes out, fails to execute the intercept or the tackle, and Moorby finishes calmly, wrongfooting Suaalii and evading Valetini. McKenzie misses the conversion. 8 mins: Another attack from Australia! Lovely ball playing from the backs once more who look in sync running deep lines with sharp hands. Jorgensen enters the fray in the left centre position and attempts the decisive long assist out to Potter but he misses his mark fractionally and New Zealand survive. They are then awarded a breakdown penalty off the lineout to allow them to kick beyond halfway. 7 mins: McKenzie belts the ball out of his 22 towards halfway to stop the clock after five minutes of breathless running rugby from both teams. Australia might regret not scoring during their ascendancy. Excellent defence from the visitors though. 6 mins: The Wallabies go again! Ross makes a burst, Jorgensen finds room on the right. McReight joins in but his pass to Wilson on the touchline goes to ground. No knock-on and Australia shift infield. Slower now, until some sharp ball-playing from the backs creates an opening on the left. New Zealand cover, the drive moves infield but 5m out, under the crossbar, there’s a turnover on the ground and the All Blacks run clear through Taylor. This has been an enterprising start from the home team. 4 mins: Australia win early lineout ball and again Lonergan is quick to kick, and again the All Blacks deal with it. Judging these high bombs isn’t easy with the afternoon sunshine casting half Accor Stadium in shadow and the other half in a bold glare. New Zealand go through their work for six phases then find room on the right edge on phase seven, but just as momentum starts to build Lonergan turns the ball over superbly on the ground. The Wallabies counter at pace! Suaalii finds an audacious offload out of contact, Wright flick passes out to Jorgensen who crosses halfway. Australia’s commitment to attacking footy is to their credit. As play moves infield the ABs get men around the ruck and are able to clear their lines. 2 mins: Both teams kick early before Nasser takes the first drive into the defensive line. The Wallabies only roll through a few phases before Lonergan goes to the boot again but the All Blacks handle Jorgensen’s pressure. Roigard tries an up-and-under of his own but it’s poorly directed. Nonetheless it comes off gold hands and back New Zealand’s way. The visitors recognise the opportunity to expand and go through hands to the right but Suaalii is across smartly to bundle Tupaea into touch. Not only that but Tupaea is forced to leave the field for an HIA after some whiplash contact on the Accor Stadium turf. Bledisloe II is under way… Lukhan Salakaia-Loto is first down the race for the Wallabies on the occasion of his 50th cap. As with the All Blacks, every Australian pays their respects to Charles, who is shaking hands while balancing on a single crutch. It’s skipper Codie Taylor that is out onto the field first though, leading his players past Nathan Charles, allowing every All Black to shake the former Wallaby hooker by the hand. Damien McKenzie is responsible for the final prematch rev-up. Vision of his address appears to show every member of the New Zealand squad wearing bright coral pink boots to sign off their otherwise entirely black outfit. It’s a very strong look. Today’s referee is Englishman Luke Pearce. The Wallabies are wearing their First Nations uniform this afternoon, and all jerseys will feature 881, the cap number of Nathan Charles, stitched into the material. The former hooker was recently diagnosed with MND and is a guest of honour at the ground today, including conducting the prematch coin toss. Above ground, atmospheric conditions are glorious. The temperature in Sydney is mild, the light rain of recent days has drifted away, and the afternoon’s easterly breeze is on the wane. The Accor Stadium ground itself looks very patchy. This is the fourth match of a busy day that has already featured the Wallaroos v Scotland, Australia’s men’s 7s v Fiji, and Australia’s women’s 7s v New Zealand. Team News Wallabies: Australia coach Les Kiss has named Declan Meredith as starting flyhalf and uncapped playmaker Harry McLaughlin-Phillips ⁠as back-up. with both Carter Gordon and Ben Donaldson unavailable because of leg injuries. An injury to Len Ikitau and the continuing suspension of Hunter Paisami have forced Kiss to move Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii ‌back into the centres ‌alongside Isaac Henry. Harry Potter comes in on the left wing ‌with Filipo Daugunu covering from the bench. Former All Blacks loosehead prop Aidan Ross gets a start in the front row with Angus Bell moved back to the replacements. Josh Nasser moves up from the bench to start at hooker with Billy Pollard backing him up and Brandon Paenga-Amosa dropped. Forwards ‌Josh Canham and Carlo Tizzano also come in to bolster the finishers, a group that includes Kalani Thomas, who is set to win his third cap as back-up to Ryan Lonergan, with Tate McDermott dropped from the matchday squad. All Blacks: New Zealand coach Dave Rennie made three changes to his starting ⁠side earlier this week, bringing in Fabian Holland for Josh Lord ⁠at lock, ⁠replacing Ethan de Groot with George Bower at loosehead prop, and promoting Josh Moorby to cover for the injured Leroy Carter on the wing. Then on gameday he was forced to withdraw Jordie Barrett after the imperious centre complained of a tight calf. Timoci Tavatavanawai comes into the run-on side with Chay Fihaki to debut off the bench. Richie Mo’unga remains unavailable because of a calf injury so Damian McKenzie gets another run in the No ‌10 shirt, with Beauden Barrett again starting at fullback but joining in the build-up frequently. “The Wallabies are a proud side and they’ll be hurting after last week,” Rennie said. “It’s a great challenge for us to now face them in ⁠front of their home crowd in Sydney.” 1. George Bower, 2. Codie Taylor (c), 3. Fletcher Newell, 4. Scott Barrett, 5. Fabian Holland, 6. Tupou Vaa’i, 7. Peter Lakai, 8. Wallace Sititi, 9. Cam Roigard, 10. Damian McKenzie, 11. Josh Moorby, 12. Timoci Tavatavanawai, 13. Quinn Tupaea, 14. Will Jordan, 15. Beauden Barrett. Replacements: 16. Samisoni Taukei’aho, 17. Xavier Numia, 18. Pasilio Tosi, 19. Shannon Frizell, 20. Du’Plessis Kirifi, 21. Cortez Ratima, 22. Chay Fihaki, 23. Rieko Ioane. 15. Tom Wright, 14. Max Jorgensen, 13. Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii, 12. Isaac Henry, 11. Harry Potter, 10. Declan Meredith, 9. Ryan Lonergan, 8. Harry Wilson (c), 7. Fraser McReight, 6. Rob Valetini, 5. Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, 4. Jeremy Williams, 3. Allan Alaalatoa, 2. Josh Nasser, 1. Aidan Ross. Replacements: 16. Billy Pollard, 17. Angus Bell, 18. Massimo De Lutiis, 19. Josh Canham, 20. Carlo Tizzano, 21. Kalani Thomas, 22. Harry McLaughlin-Phillips, 23. Filipo Daugunu. The return Bledisloe Cup match for the Wallabies is the showpiece in a glorious afternoon of Australian union beginning with the Wallaroos’ clash against Scotland, followed by two sevens showdowns against the men’s Fiji side and New Zealand’s women. The carnival spirit of the afternoon, however, will be cancelled if the Wallabies are tortured like they were against the All Blacks in Eden Park last week. The 17-14 half-time margin made way for a 50-19 humbling, just the ninth time in Australia’s proud rugby history their men’s XV have copped a half-century. The win was the All Blacks’ 12th in a row against the Wallabies, quashing optimism that had built steadily over the first three months under coach Les Kiss. Hello everybody and welcome to live coverage of Australia v New Zealand in the second and final match of the 2026 Bledisloe Cup. Kick-off at Sydney’s Accor Stadium is scheduled for 4pm local time (6pm NZDT). The destination of the humungous silver trophy may already be decided for another year but there remains plenty to play for as the Wallabies sign off on home soil for 2026. Not least demonstrating the capacity to bounce back after a first defeat in six matches. Last weekend’s reverse in Auckland exacerbated Australia’s issues at No 10, forcing another round of playmaker musical chairs. It also reinforced concerns over the national team’s strength in depth. While the first XV is now world class, and a fully fit squad is up there with the best, injuries, suspensions, and European absentees reveal a threadbare group. Les Kiss’s ability to make the most of the talent at his disposal will be put to the test in Sydney as he makes do without the likes of Will Skelton, Len Ikitau, Carter Gordon, and Taniela Tupou, not to mention a host of other contenders for spots in his matchday 23. “We got a clear picture last weekend of where we need ⁠to be better,” Kiss said during the week. “We’ve said all along we’ll continue to work hard and grow our game, and the squad has been impressive in the way they have prepared this week.” The All Blacks are far from full strength themselves but they stormed home in the second half at Eden Park and arrive at Accor Stadium with only minimal changes. They were guided around masterfully in Auckland by Cam Roigard, the scrum-half benefiting from the instinct of Damien McKenzie and experience of Beauden Barrett on his outside. Even on Australian soil New Zealand will start hot favourites to extend their already record winning streak against the Wallabies to 13. I’ll be back with final team lists and more shortly. Please send me your emails and keep me company throughout the evening. The address is jonathan.howcroft.freelance@theguardian.com.