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England 22-24 New Zealand: Steve Borthwick's side snatch defeat from the jaws of victory against the All Blacks after final quarter collapse and George Ford's missed late penalty England suffered defeat to New Zealand in first of their autumn internationals Hosts were leading at Twickenham before All Blacks prevailed in dramatic finish By Nik Simon Published: 18:34, 2 November 2024 | Updated: 18:36, 2 November 2024 e-mail View comments The right post will rattle right through George Ford ’s nightmares. England brought on their old gun-slinger to carry them through the final quarter but the plan back-fired as his 79th minute penalty struck the woodwork and victory reverberated into defeat. For Steve Borthwick , it was another case of so near yet so far.
This was his best chance of landing a big scalp in the autumn series but victory, once again, belonged to the All Blacks . England were leading by two scores going into the final quarter when they pulled off Ben Spencer and Marcus Smith. It felt like a declaration – backing themselves to hold on, rather than double down for the big kill – and ultimately it did not pay off.
It welcomed the All Blacks back into the game, handing the fans a helter-skelter finale that played into Kiwi hands. New Zealand were up against the ropes before Smith’s departure. Their striking black jerseys used to feel like coats of armour but this was not a vintage side.
These days, the jersey feels the yellow and green Brazilian football kit – a throwback to the likes of Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. England fell to a 22-24 defeat against New Zealand in their first autumn international Steve Borthwick's side showed a lot of promise in the early going in Saturday's clash Marcus Smith proved to be a consistent attacking threat in front of a baying Twickenham crowd Beauden Barrett is the last man standing from the All Black generation that struck the fear of God into the opposition. The flickering ember of their global domination.
Now he is surrounded by fresh faces. New names who do not yet transcend the sport itself, but yesterday Wallace Sititi looked like the latest warrior to come through the production line. At times, he looked like he was carrying he weight of their nation on his shoulders.
Smith was visible from the start. Referees are under new orders to defensive blocking under the high-ball and England’s coaches will have sniffed an opportunity. Ben Spencer is the master at box-kicking onto a six-pence and all of the All Black analysts would be ready for him to put boot to ball.
However, at the first ruck, inside 30 seconds, he shaped to kick but instead passed the ball to Smith to play out of the 22. England’s early intent paid off, with Smith kicking the first points of the game as they scrambled the Kiwi defensive structure with dummy runners. New Zealand lost experienced hooker Codie Taylor to a head injury and their set-piece suffered.
Attacking from a botched lineout, Sititi somehow managed to pull off a Sonny Bill Williams-style offload. He smuggled the ball to Mark Telea who, with just a couple of metres to play with, skinned Ellis Genge to score the opening try down the right wing. For an hour, Smith attacked flat to the line, causing problems for the Kiwi defence.
They were drowned by dummy runners which resulted in misjudged tackles and a free-falling penalty count. But the All Blacks remained dangerous in their own right, with Wallace Sititi impressing Big tackles came in on both sides, with Chandler Cunningham-South landing a huge hit on Tupou Vaa’i There were errors on both sides. Spotting a hole in England’s new defence – the first Test since Felix Jones’ departure - Barrett swept a ruck and switched to Will Jordan.
The winger arced around Genge, moving from one angle to another, to score the Kiwis’ second. When the tackles were timed correctly, they were showstoppers. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso was caught in the crossfire, while Chandler Cunningham South landed a chest pumping hit on Tupou Vaa’i that almost separated his body from its soul.
Smith’s penalties kept England in touch, trailing by just two points at the end of a finely poised first-half. Five minutes into the second-half, Smith’s magic helped England move ahead. England threw bodies into a ruck inside their 22, forcing young scrum-half Cortez Ratima to rush his pass.
Smith intercepted and sprinted out of his half to bring the stadium to its feet. Jordan and Rieko Ioane chased him down but Smith used his ringwork to buy time for his support runners, setting up Feyi-Waboso for his third try in as many Tests against the All Blacks. Smith kicked his points and England moved two scores clear.
With victory in sight, Borthwick parked the bus. Ford is a masterful player but his introduction felt scripted. An inevitability that did not reflect Smith’s influence on the game.
Ford motioned to his players for calm as they landed some big defensive turnovers. A no-arms tackle by Ben Earl allowed Damian McKenzie to narrow the gap with a penalty, and the Kiwi pressure began to ramp up. After being introduced late on George Ford had a golden chance to seal the win for England But his kick struck the bar leaving England missing out on an opportunity to claim a big win In the 77th minute, with a penalty advantage, Telea wrestled through Ford’s tackle to score down the right wing.
McKenzie landed a world class conversion but England had a couple of minutes to snatch back the victory. Anton Lienert-Brown was sin-binned for a high tackle on Theo Dann and Ford had a shot at victory. His kick rattled off the post but the Kiwis fumbled the rebound.
There was a second chance when Ford lined up a drop goal but his shot sailed wide and England left with a familiar taste in their mouths. Steve Borthwick New Zealand Share or comment on this article: England 22-24 New Zealand: Steve Borthwick's side snatch defeat from the jaws of victory against the All Blacks after final quarter collapse and George Ford's missed late penalty e-mail Add comment.
