All Blacks flex muscles against Bulls to send Springbok warning

The All Blacks delivered a muscular performance that was a perfect reminder that, for all their slickness, they can roll up their sleeves and do the physical stuff as well as anyone – comfortably putting the Bulls away.

Their pack was immense, while out wide the movement and interplay of the back division, even with the inexperienced Josh Jacomb at flyhalf, was ominous.

They made 12 linebreaks to the one of the Bulls, and remained a constant threat, especially on the back of the good work by the pack.

Although they weren’t error-free – there were some poor moments of loose handling of bad options – but the good outweighed the bad tenfold. Coach Dave Rennie will be a happy man at this stage of the tour and will have some tough Test selections to mull over in the coming day or so.

The All Blacks scored more than 100 points in two games this week, including a 54-0 win over the Sharks on Tuesday, and look in fine fettle heading into four Test series against the Springboks starting next week.

Try fest

Eight tries on the night told the story of the All Blacks’ all-round game. To their credit, The Bulls stayed in the fight, after being 24-0 down at the break. It could have been a complete rout, but the home team saved some face with a stronger second-half display.

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New Zealand dominated the breakdown, with Anton Segner a continuous menace with his physical presence, and they were almost immovable in defence.

Segner was excellent all night, and looks set to feature on the bench at the very least, at Ellis Park next week.

It wasn’t uncommon to see Bulls players driven backwards in the tackle. The tourists have improved with every performance on tour, and this was a perfect message to send to the Springboks a week out from the first Test.

The All Blacks scored four tries before halftime that showed their wide array of skills.

It all started up front. Their scrum bullied the Bulls, with tighthead Tyrel Lomax making his claim for a Test start with an emphatic display.

No 8 Peter Lakai is a brute with ball in hand, while lock Fabian Holland’s physicality was slightly undone by poor handling at times.

Wing Josh Moorby scored two tries in the stanza, the first from a lovely sweeping backline move in which fullback Beauden Barrett played a central role.

That was the flashy side of the All Blacks, cutting the Bulls’ defensive line with simple wrap-around plays and slick passing.

Later the tries came from powerful carries through the forwards, and strong mauling that laid the platform.

Hooker Codie Taylor, playing his first match of the tour, looked like he’d never been away. From leading the haka to leading the pack, he was typically immense.

He scored twice before halftime. The first from a quick tap-and-go where he brushed off defenders with ease, and the second with the last move before the break, after half-a-dozen carries by the big boys that dented the Bulls defence.

Better second half

Immediately after halftime, the Bulls scored after a strong run by lock Ruan Vermaak from the top of a lineout, which gave them the perfect start to the second half.

It was one of several good moments that followed. Captain Marcell Coetzee, and fellow looseforward Jeandre Rudolph, were central to much of their good work. Wing Thaakir Abrahams also enjoyed a strong display in difficult circumstances against a frequent black tide surging his way.

Unfortunately for the Bulls, the good work of their first try was immediately undone when they failed to control the restart, which allowed the All Blacks to surge into the red zone again.

New Zealand don’t need second invitations to make the most of them, and wing Leroy Carter scored the first of his two tries after the ball had been worked through the phases.

The game went through a loose phase after that. Both teams were turning over possession in a wild passage that eventually ended with All Black centre Rieko Ioane finishing another sweeping attack from the halfway line.

The Bulls refused to fold completely though. From a strong scrum on the halfway line, replacement scrumhalf Paul de Wet went down the blindside, passing to wing Stravino Jacobs, who finished with a great step past Beauden Barrett.

Carter scored again after another New Zealand linebreak, to bring the score to 50 for the All Blacks, but the Bulls had the last say when Coetzee barged over from close range.

The first course of this tour is done. The All Blacks are primed and ready for the main course now. DM

Scorers:

Bulls – Tries: Ruan Vermaak, Stravino Jacobs, Marcell Coetzee. Conversions: Curwin Bosch (2).

New Zealand – Tries: Josh Moorby (2), Codie Taylor (2), Leroy Carter (2), Rieko Ioane, Wallace Sititi. Conversions: Beauden Barrett, Josh Jacomb (4).

All Blacks flex muscles against Bulls to send Springbok warning