All Blacks secure their ‘tomorrow’ with Rugby World Cup semi win

PARIS, France — The All Blacks have expressed all week their wish to have a “tomorrow” after this Rugby World Cup semi-final. They wanted a meaningful final week, and that fueled this ruthless dismantling of Argentina as New Zealand prevailed 44-6 on a stormy night in Paris.

Any hope of an Argentinian surprise was extinguished in the 17th minute. The All Blacks had their second try and had a stranglehold on the match, the machine operating with a familiar ruthless efficiency. New Zealand barely managed to secure victory, meaning they are now in their fifth men’s World Cup final.

There was a sense of inevitability about it all. Those fans clinging to the hope that Argentina could somehow pull off a repeat and a result like their two historic victories in 2020 and 2022 against the All Blacks were quickly brought back to reality.

New Zealand were heavy favorites going into this semi-final and vowed all week not to allow a repeat of 2019, when England knocked them out of the World Cup at this stage. The men in black cried that day, and the tears flowed again after their monumental quarter-final victory over Ireland at this same stadium last Saturday. But they were relieved to have a chance at redemption.

All week, the noise coming from the All Blacks camp had been about lessons learned, but also about trying to distance themselves from a narrative of redemption and anchor everything on opportunity and the future. They talked about wanting there to be a reason to be excited about Monday this time around, rather than the emptiness of a bronze medal game.

And this performance symbolized that mentality. From the free head to the back, their handling was on point, their skills so sharp that they made the technical difficulty seem simple. When Sam Whitelock throws passes with the back of his hand and you have props, locks and back linemen involved in sweeping moves with the same ease and comfort as their outside backs, it must be incredibly difficult to stop these All Blacks. wave. And then you factor in Will Jordan, a ruthless finisher, who scored a hat-trick, just the third to achieve such a feat in a men’s semi-final, following in the footsteps of Jonah Lomu and Adam Ashley-Cooper.

The All Blacks scored three tries in the first half, with Jordan opening the scoring. Each one was a lesson in patience but also in precision and perseverance. The execution of the pass for their first was outstanding, as they sucked up the Argentine defense and put Will Jordan in the corner. For their second, Rieko Ioane broke through the Pumas’ unstructured defense and eventually – with Whitelock at the heart of both tries – it was Jordan who put Jordie Barrett over as he rolled three Argentine players to pepper the ball. The third – actually the one that ended this contest – was a more patient game, a lesson in sucking defenders in and leaving space on the outside as Shannon Frizell had a clear run.

At this stage the Pumas had fought valiantly – as they always do – but there was no Marseille miracle like they did against Wales last weekend. This time, they couldn’t find the answers. Michael Cheika – Argentina’s coach – looked frustrated during the first half, probably due to a few calls from Angus Gardner that went against his team, and he patrolled the touchline at half-time. -time. But when he saw Frizell score the ball, that was enough for him as he headed towards the tunnel.

That 15-minute period at halftime can do wonders for teams, but there was no resurgence from Argentina. Aaron Smith kept his foot on the Argentine’s throat and rushed over in the 42nd minute, with many in the stadium still returning to their seats. From there there were glimpses of the Argentina team that so many love and cherish, but it was all New Zealand as Frizell added another.

The Mexican surge erupted in the 50th minute, with boos greeting the end of the stunt, but it was symptomatic of a despondent atmosphere from the 77,653 fans in the stadium. Argentina fans chanted sporadically, there was a brilliant Marseille performance from the start, while All Blacks supporters enjoyed watching the familiar sight of their team ticking the boxes en route to another World Cup final .

Although the All Blacks had emptied the bench, they would still have time for two more tries, with Jordan grabbing both, his third a magnificent effort (and a yellow card from Scott Barrett for a deliberate knock-on) as it became a matter of load management. and test new combinations for the All Balcks, while maintaining overall performance from the first to the last minute.

A little over a year ago, the All Blacks had six defeats in eight. Coach Ian Foster’s job was on the line. Before this World Cup, they suffered a record defeat against South Africa and lost their first match against France. They weren’t mentioned in some corners in the same way as France or Ireland when it came to potential World Cup winners. But the beauty – or brutality – of this team is that they know how to give their best when it counts. Pre-tournament form be damned, it’s all about building to a crescendo when the pressure is really on.

For anyone worried that their World Cup final was a few games into their monumental victory over Ireland, think again. It was as clinical a performance as you’ll see in the semi-final and New Zealand will fancy their chance to add a fourth Men’s World Cup to their tally next weekend. The All Blacks’ dominant victory ensured they had a “tomorrow” and a final to prepare for, as if that was ever in doubt.