The All Blacks break new ground when they take on an under-strength Manu Samoa at Yarrow Stadium in New Plymouth tonight. Whilst the match is little more than practice for the All Balcks as they build up to the Tri-Nations decider in Brisbane on Saturday week, New Plymouth is giving the team a sell-out crowd.This is a great PR exercise by the NZRU. Ticket prices were kept low, and the Taranaki faithful nsapped them up in quick-smart time. It's a rare visit to the provinces for the AB's, but I am sure that they will have been blown away by the warmth of the welcome they have received.
The match itself should be little more than a training run for an almost full-strength All Black team, but I'm sure the Taranaki public won't mind. The AB's are in town, and according to a friend from up that way, New Plymouth will be buzzing tonight. And it's a big night for Rodney So'oialo - not only does he play his 50th test; he becomes the first Samoan to captain the All Blacks against Manu Samoa.
UPDATE: New Zealand 101; Manu Samoa 14
A pretty scrappy match, but a lot of running rugby, with the AB's scoring 15 tries to two - the final try coming after the fulltime hooter, with the pressure on Stephen Donald to convert and bring up only the fifth All Black century.
A good hit-out for the All Blacks - certainly a good chance to get some of the cobwebs out of the system before the most important match of the season to date next week. A win to the All Blacks at Suncorp Stadium will see both the Bledisloe Cup and Tri-Nations locked away for another year - bring it on!
1 comment:
I only watched until the score was in the high 70's. Only one All Black stood out for me. He was only on the field for about half an hour but I thought Anthony Tuitavake was the only All Black who was `right on the job'.
He must be the first choice winger nest week unless he is out with concussion. Perhaps then Kahui, who will surely be our No1 midfielder for the next few years to return to his proper place.
Apart from that I am not sure that the AB's would have got anything out of the game.
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