The Greatest Rivalry Tour got off to a thrilling start as the All Blacks defeated the Stormers in front of more than 47,000 fans in Cape Town.
The All Blacks scored six tries in the game, with four coming in the second half once the game had opened up. The All Blacks only moved more than one score ahead in the final 10 minutes, and the Stormers gave this lineup of more fringe players a good workout as they prepare for the remainder of the tour.
All Blacks forwards
1 George Bower- 6
Solid scrum platform and, despite being relatively quiet in the open, wasn’t a bad way to start his tour of South Africa against a strong pack.
2 Samisoni Taukei’aho- 7
Scored the opening try of the tour from the base of a powerful maul. Won 100% of his lineouts and made 11 carries, inside the top five for the All Blacks.
3 Pasilio Tosi- 5
Conceded a penalty from the opening scrum of the game on the Stormers five-metre line. Would have been a good scrum to put pressure on. Penalised in the 28th minute for another scrum offence less than 10 metres from the Stormers line.
4 Fabian Holland- 7
Good pressure on a lineout on 35 minutes forced a not straight throw call. A positive return, getting just shy of 60 minutes. One of only three All Blacks to make a dominant tackle.
5 Patrick Tuipulotu- 6
Captain for the day and had a solid enough game. Didn’t do anything particularly standout, but the team’s discipline in periods was worrying.
6 Simon Parker- 6
Yellow carded for two lineout infringements, one which prevented a rolling maul heading for the line. The maul after this was when the Stormers were able to score to make it 7-7. Scored the second All Blacks try in the corner. Finished well with several defenders drifting across. Only completed five tackles as a back-rower.
7 Anton Segner- 8
Made a huge hit in the second minute and looked to get his hands on the ball a lot early. Most carries at the time that he came off with. A positive performance that should hopefully earn him some test minutes. Made 10 tackles, despite only being on the pitch for a little bit more than 55 minutes.
8 Peter Lakai- 7
Quiet in the first half but when the game became looser he got his hands on the ball more. A brilliant step and offload to Leroy Carter led to the fourth try. Beat six defenders in the game and led the way for tackles made and completed, although he did miss four.
Backs
9 Cortez Ratima- 6
Wasn’t able to get the speed of ball going that he would have wanted against a domestic side. Nothing particularly stood out in his performance, but did make 73 passes in the game, 55 more than any other All Black.
10 Beauden Barrett- 5
A few mistakes under the high ball in the first half. Pace of ball seemed to be a problem with pressure from the Stormers line. Three good conversions from three.
11 Rieko Ioane- 6
Moved to 13 after the injury to Billy Proctor. Was very smart at the base of the ruck allowed him to score the All Blacks’ third try.
12 Anton Lienert-Brown- 7
Picked up a yellow card 12 minutes in for a high tackle. Despite his 10 minutes in the sin bin, he led the All Blacks in carries with 14 and carried for 74 minutes.
13 Billy Proctor- 6
A disappointing knock-on when the All Blacks looked destined to score in the 27th minute. Good wide pass helped set up the second try. Came off injured early in the second half.
14 Leroy Carter- 7
Fantastic finish in the 72nd minute, beating three men to get over the line to score the fourth All Blacks try of the game. Made 69 metres in the game, the second highest on the pitch. Beat seven defenders, leading the game in this area, although did miss five tackles in the game.
15 Josh Moorby- 6
Very quiet throughout the game but popped up at the crucial time. With less than five minutes to go, charged down the kick at the back and then was able to finish it after an expert one-handed pick-up. A very technical infringement in the final moments saw him yellow-carded for preventing a try being scored; a penalty try was given.
Replacements
16 Asafo Aumua- 7
A powerful carry off the base of the maul scored the sixth try by the All Blacks to finish the game.
17 Ollie Norris- 6
Came on and continued the solid scrum platform.
18 Siale Lauaki- 7
Came on and was solid in the scrum. Made five tackles in just over 20 minutes, more than any other substitute.
19 Sam Darry- 6
Crucial intervention shortly after coming on to work back and stop a try. Didn’t make a tackle in more than 20 minutes as a forward. Did put himself forward for four carries.
20 Ethan Blackadder-6
Came in and was solid, but didn’t do too much to stand out amongst the backrowers in a stage of the game where Lakai was able to take advantage of the space.
21 Kyle Preston- 6
Only on for a short while and did make a strong tackle, but his tackled assister, Moorby, illegally held up the ball and gave away a penalty try.
22 Josh Jacomb- 6
Offered a different threat than Barrett when he came on. Will be disappointed to have missed two of his three conversions, although one was particularly difficult.
23 Caleb Clarke- 7
Offered a bit of an injection of pace with his introduction. Had developed an overlap on 64 minutes and left his pass short. A great covering tackle with 10 minutes to go brought a halt to a dangerous Stormers attack.
