This was a very good test match.
I watched the Wallabies play Wales last night when I got back to my room, and the intensity, skill level and ferocity of the contest was nowhere near what we saw in Dunedin.
England are a proper rugby side, one that came within a point of reaching the Rugby World Cup final, that beat Ireland in the Six Nations, and that very nearly beat the All Blacks in New Zealand last night for just the third time in their history, and the first time in 21 years.
We knew what their strengths were -close, combative, one-off rugby with ball in hand, and a smothering defence designed to deny the All Blacks any space to weave their magic in midfield.
That leaves gaps out wide and certainly Sevu Reece’s try came from the tactic designed to combat that, the cross-field kick.
But England were also expansive when the occasion presented itself, way more than I expected them to be.
I was so impressed with the general play of England first-five Marcus Smith, he’s a true triple-threat with ball in hand - he can kick, pass or run as the fancy takes him.
The only blot on his copy book last night was his goal kicking, he left 8 points out there, and in a 1-point game, that is obviously not great.
Maro Itoje was also excellent for England, a good try and a constant physicality around the field that caught the eye.
Best on park for the All Blacks for me was Patrick Tuipulotu. It’s incredible to think he was in major doubt for this series, but his all-round play, accuracy in his core roles, ball carries, lineout takes and strong tackling was just excellent.
The obvious talking point though is Damian McKenzie’s penalty attempt being timed out. The rule is that from the moment you signal your intent to take a kick at goal; you have 60 seconds for the kick to be taken.
I think we’re probably all OK with the rule. It's designed to stop time wasting, especially late in the games. But surely there needs to be a shot clock on the big screen, a visual cue for the kicker and for us in the crowd.
Every other sport that uses shot clocks of varying degrees- basketball with its 24 seconds to take a shot, tennis for serves, cricket for DRS reviews, anything where there is a time limit for something to happen - has a visual demonstration of that on the big screen at the venue.
Why wasn’t there one there last night?
There simply must be a visual indicator for the 60 seconds it's an absolute no-brainer. Don’t be surprised to see a shot clock on the screen at Eden Park next weekend.
To give Damian McKenzie his due, he didn’t complain afterwards. He owned it, and said he has to make adjustments.
I’ve watched it back and timed it, and the referee is bang on with his timing, from the moment he points to the posts to indicate the kick, it’s exactly 60 seconds before he blows again for the timed-out call.
It took about 20 seconds to get the tee out, and Damian McKenzie doesn’t have the ball on the tee until 40 seconds. From there, he was also up against the clock, and so it proved.
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