England had not beaten New Zealand at home since 2012
victory in a tense second half, but Mark Tele’a’s 76th-minute try in the corner, converted by McKenzie, edged the All Blacks 24-22 ahead.
This is hardly a vintage Kiwi side though. They only won three of their six Rugby Championship fixtures, and two of those came against a struggling Australia side. Perhaps that was reflected in the selection of the Barrett brothers Beauden and Jordie in yet another brand new 10 and 12 combination, at international level at least..
But little of that matters when the first whistle goes, and whatever the impact of the pre-match frivolities, it was New Zealand who landed the first blow of any note. Just as he had in their last meeting four months ago, Tele’a scored the opening try, the beneficiary of a poor double tackle on Wallace Sititi.
And within five minutes of the restart, they were not. Smith, whose attacking prowess had been stifled in the opening 40 minutes, got the jump on Cortez Ratima’s pass, deep inside England’s own half, and the ensuing breakaway was finished by Feyi-Waboso, still a medical student at Exeter University.
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