| Venue: Twickenham Stadium Date: Saturday, 19 November Kick-off: 17:30 GMT |
| Protection: Reside textual content commentary on the BBC Sport web site and app, updates on BBC Radio 5 Reside and BBC Sounds |
Ten years in the past this autumn, Twickenham celebrated beneath a scoreline as sensational because it was surreal: England 38-21 New Zealand.
The All Blacks not often lose. The workforce of 2012, which had received the Rugby World Cup the earlier 12 months and would go on to defend their title in 2015, tasted defeat even much less incessantly.
However England, 9-1 outsiders in a two-horse race, romped residence with a 17-point lead. It was the All Blacks’ third-heaviest defeat in 109 years of Check rugby. It stays England’s greatest ever win over New Zealand.
That is the way it occurred, and what it meant, from those that performed on that extraordinary day.
The build-up
New Zealand got here into the sport on an unbeaten run of 20 matches, stretching again 15 months. England, making an attempt to rebuild after a dismal 2011 Rugby World Cup, had received solely one among their previous six and had been crushed by Australia and South Africa on the earlier two weekends.
England full-back Alex Goode: “It was actual doom and gloom. Poor Chris Robshaw was captain and had copped it on the chin for not taking the factors towards Australia after which not going to the nook towards South Africa.
“Everybody was hammering him and giving [coach] Stuart Lancaster lots of warmth. I used to be new into the setup and it was fairly powerful.
“Folks have been texting me beforehand saying better of luck. I feel what they meant, however did not say, was you’re going to want it.”
England flanker Tom Wooden: “I did some press main as much as the sport and it bought a good bit of consideration.
“There was nothing contrived about it. I genuinely thought they’re simply 15 blokes on a patch of grass like another. There was no mystique to them in my thoughts.
“No-one admired New Zealand rugby greater than me. I spent eight months enjoying in North Otago again in 2006. Richie McCaw was an absolute hero of mine and I used to be in actual McCaw nation. I had performed towards Kurow, his junior membership.
“I suppose I bought comfy in that setting and a few of that aura that surrounded them was unveiled. I did not really feel like we have been any lower than them.”
New Zealand’s preparations for the match had been disrupted by an outbreak of sickness among the many squad.
New Zealand hooker Keven Mealamu: “We might have encountered that, with the change of meals, change of place, however it occurs on most excursions. It’s a kind of issues that it’s important to take care of. I would not put the outcome all the way down to that little virus going around the workforce.
“We have been at our greatest, however we have been towards an English aspect who hit their straps.”
Earlier than kick-off
Goode: “There may be nothing just like the environment whenever you play New Zealand. The gang are there earlier and louder, the anthems are up one other notch in quantity, after which there’s the haka.”
Seven years earlier than Owen Farrell’s mid-haka smirk earlier than the 2019 Rugby World Cup semi-final, Manu Tuilagi, going through New Zealand for the primary time, grinned on the opposition as their pre-game ritual got here to a detailed.
England centre Manu Tuilagi: “I liked it, I at all times will.
“It’s wonderful to face in entrance of the haka. In the event you return in time it’s a battle dance, so to witness it in individual is wonderful.
“When they’re doing it, it’s simply you and your opposition. It retains you in that second.”
First half
Owen Farrell’s boot was the one supply of factors within the first 40 minutes. The England fly-half, 21, kicked a penalty with the ultimate act of the half to ship his workforce down the tunnel with a shock 12-0 lead.
New Zealand full-back Israel Dagg: “I vividly keep in mind Richie McCaw coming as much as me beneath the sticks when Owen was lining up one other kick and asking me what I used to be seeing.
“I used to be nonetheless fairly younger [24], solely in my second 12 months within the workforce, I needed to say I did not know what was occurring. I used to be a bit rattled and I feel that’s what everybody else was feeling.
“We have been a bit all around the present as a result of we did not predict these ‘what ifs’ – what if England got here out and began constructing momentum and we could not get any continuity.”
Goode: “Our gameplan was to fly at them. Defensively we needed to remove time and area. We did not need to give Dan Carter time to run on the line. We needed to disclaim them offloads, cease them utilizing their ball-handling abilities.
“You can see it within the first half, they’ve a number of overlaps they usually thought they may cross round us, however the boys have been flying out the road, hitting every part.”
Second half
A fluffed Kiwi catch off the kick-off, a robust England scrum, a penalty awarded by referee George Clancy and, three minutes after the interval, the house aspect had pushed their result in 15-0. However then got here the comeback. Two tries in three minutes – from wing Julian Savea and quantity eight Kieran Learn – introduced the All Blacks sweeping again into the sport, only a level behind.
Goode: “We felt good at half-time, however we stated within the altering room we needed to be cautious, that New Zealand may rating at any time. And certain sufficient they did. Twice.
“I am fairly certain lots of the boys thought,’ blimey, right here we go’. You can really feel a lull within the crowd too, like they thought it was all too good to be true.”
Wooden: “To the group and the folks watching on tv, there may need been a way of inevitability that New Zealand have woken up and have been going to take it away from us.
“It nearly felt we sort of received it a second time once we took maintain of the sport once more.”
One man was key in retaking the initiative. England responded with a three-try blitz within the area of eight minutes, with Tuilagi’s energy and tempo enjoying a key half on every event.
Dagg: “In that interval Manu was completely harmful – he was ripping us to shreds.
“We knew Manu was the largest menace beforehand, however we had a few the very best centres within the sport – Ma’a Nonu and Conrad Smith.
“I had a lot perception in our midfield, that I did not anticipate that from Manu. However he dominated us. Each time he made a break I must try to sort out him and I keep in mind pondering, ‘if he can run over Ma’a or Dan Carter, what can he do to me?”
Mealamu: “Some days you face an opponent and also you see one thing particular. He was ripping via our workforce all through the entire day. It wasn’t only one occasion. He was on hearth.”
Tuilagi: “It was one among my favorite video games.
“It was a whole-team efficiency. We knew what they have been going to deliver, however we nonetheless needed to get our element proper.
“Folks at all times keep in mind that sport, they at all times discuss it. Simply to be concerned goes to be with me endlessly. I used to be blessed to be there.”
Trailing 32-14 simply after the hour, New Zealand couldn’t summon a second comeback. Savea’s second rating, 5 minutes wanting full-time, would solely patch up the scoreline, moderately than change the end result.
Wooden: “My overriding reminiscence is being on the aspect of the scrum and seeing it daybreak on two of the faces of two of my heroes – Richie McCaw and Kieran Learn – that they weren’t going to win this one, that the All Black surge wasn’t coming.
“It felt like I may see the confusion of their eyes. Perhaps I used to be misinterpreting, possibly they might see it in another way, however from the place I used to be stood it felt prefer it was dawning on them that it wasn’t their day.
“There was a component of confusion, frustration and uncertainty and to have created that in two greats of the sport, in a world-class workforce, was an actual second of satisfaction.”
The aftermath
Dagg: “I keep in mind Brad Barratt, who had had an outstanding sport at 12, singing the room down on the post-match perform. He has an exquisite voice on him.
“We have been having a beer, licking our personal wounds and hating what had gone on. I used to be pondering we do not ever need to lose to England once more as a result of all this singing and chanting sucks!”
Tuilagi: “We went again to the bar again at [team base] Pennyhill Park afterwards. I used to be on the guitar singing Bob Marley.
“I keep in mind doing Redemption Track. That’s how I taught myself to play – Redemption Track movies on YouTube. That’s what occurs whenever you get injured lots!”
Goode: “Poor previous Joe Launchbury was in a proper pickle.
“Again then, on the finish of the autumn, each participant who had received their first cap that 12 months must have a drink with each different member of the squad.
“Joe, who was making solely his second begin that day, was like a child giraffe by the tip of the evening.
“Manu had the guitar and no-one was going to take it off him, Dan Cole and Tom Youngs have been in a nook placing the world to rights and me and Ashy [Chris Ashton] have been most likely as much as no good.
“You do not get a great deal of time collectively – six days later I used to be enjoying away to Munster within the Champions Cup – however it was a bloody good evening.
“Wanting again on it now, you possibly can see lots of that workforce have gone on to be high gamers and difficult opponents.
“Alex Corbisiero, Tom Youngs and Dan Cole is a flipping good and difficult entrance row. Geoff Parling was a critical animal, Joe Launchbury was younger and had no worry, Tom Wooden and Chris Robshaw have been each actual battlers, a few of the greatest again rows the Premiership has ever produced.
“Ben Youngs was nonetheless fairly younger and Owen Farrell, Brad Barratt and Manu is as powerful a midfield as you’ll ever face.
“It was by no means going to be a workforce that rolled over simply. Nevertheless it was not the outcome anybody anticipated.”
Mealamu: “You consider it for a bit and chew on it, however the learnings you are taking from video games like which are the foundations to your subsequent massive objective.
“It was one thing we thought of and took on board once we got here again via England [on their successful World Cup defence] in 2015.
“We took some nice learnings from that 2012 sport.”
What occurred subsequent
Alex Goode received the final of his 21 England caps in 2016. He has received 5 Premierships titles and three European Champions Cups with Saracens, and holds the membership file for Premiership appearances. He was named the English top-flight’s participant of the month for October on Thursday.
Tom Wooden, who received the final of his 50 caps in England’s 2017 Six Nations success, retired from rugby in June. He runs a woodwork enterprise with former Northampton team-mate Alex Waller and coaches at Bugbrooke RFC. He’ll make a quick return to rugby when he seems for the Barbarians towards Northampton on Saturday, 26 November.
Keven Mealamu is third in New Zealand’s all-time record of cap winners. Since his retirement after 2015 Rugby World Cup success he has run a health club along with his spouse, and earlier this 12 months was one of many gamers to come back into the Black Ferns camp earlier than their very own profitable Rugby World Cup marketing campaign.
Manu Tuilagi will line up at outdoors centre towards New Zealand as soon as once more on Saturday. Now at Sale, he has performed 32 instances for England within the decade since, with numerous accidents stopping him being a constant presence within the aspect.
Israel Dagg retired from the sport in 2019 on the age of 30 after a long-term knee harm prevented him including to his 66 All Blacks caps. He has labored as a tv pundit since and hosts a breakfast radio present.
