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Wellington saw two matches inside the same game. For twenty-five minutes Italy ran the show against the All Blacks and went into the sheds just 14-10 down, alive and fully in the contest. Then, in thirteen second-half minutes, New Zealand shifted gear: four tries between the 41st and 53rd minute and a final 47-17 that tells you far less than what the Azzurri had built in round two of the Nations Championship, on Saturday 11 July in front of 33,087 in Wellington.
A first half worthy of a big team
The statement came early. On 2 minutes Paolo Garbisi dummied the kick and released Tommaso Menoncello, who broke Proctor’s tackle, skipped past Savea and played a give-and-go with Malik Faissal before flying over: 7-0, converted by Allan. New Zealand hit back at once — a five-metre penalty touch and Darry over on 7 minutes — but Italy would not budge: a rock-solid scrum, with Fischetti troubling Lomax and Riccioni excellent, a clean lineout and the best defence of this tour. On 20 minutes Allan’s penalty put Italy back in front, 7-10.
It took a moment of pure class to flip it: on the half-hour Jordie Barrett’s chip found Leroy Carter, who beat Allan to the ball and fed Will Jordan for the try that made it 14-10 at the break — with Italy having gone close through Menoncello, held up over the line.
Why did Italy collapse after half-time?
Three things at once: four tries conceded between the 41st and 53rd minute (Roigard, De Groot and Jordan twice), a string of injuries — Faissal off at half-time with a shoulder problem, then Lorenzo Cannone and finally Allan, stretchered off — and Niccolò Cannone’s red card, which left Italy with 14 men for twenty minutes at the worst possible time.
The sliding door at 21-10
The turning point came early in the second half. Trailing 21-10 after Roigard’s try straight from the restart, Italy built fifteen phases going forward — Vintcent broke two tackles, Marin found a lovely offload for Zambonin — and stopped a metre short of the line. Then Brex’s kick was intercepted, the All Blacks broke through Moorby and De Groot eventually crashed over for 26-10: seven points that could have made it 21-17 became a double-digit gap.
Italy were right there, right there, right there — and conceding like that off a counter just cuts your legs from under you.
That is DanPat’s reading, and the numbers back him up: from that moment the game was never in the balance again.
Jordan into history, Moorby the revelation
The night had one owner: Will Jordan, a hat-trick and 50 tries in 56 Tests. No All Black has ever scored more — Doug Howlett’s record of 49 is gone. The third, on 53 minutes, came from a quick tap by Barrett. He was named player of the match too.
Alongside the record-breaker, the revelation: Josh Moorby, on from the 31st minute of the first half for Carter, a debut to remember with a direct hand in the three tries that broke the game open. Anton Segner came on at half-time to become the first German-born All Black. Vaa’i’s try after the hooter fixed the final 47-17.
The red card, Marin’s try and the numbers
On 51 minutes Niccolò Cannone was shown yellow for an illegal clear-out on Roigard at a ruck, and the bunker upgraded it to red: twenty minutes a man down. Yet it was precisely with 14 men that Italy scored their second try: Lamaro pounced on a loose ball, Brex rode Roigard’s tackle and sent Leonardo Marin over, Garbisi converting for 40-17. There was also a debut late on for Giulio Marini, Azzurro number 756.
The broadcast numbers show an Italy with 100% of their scrums and lineouts won (plus a Ruzza steal), just 6 penalties conceded and 16 turnovers — still too many, but a long way from the 25 of Tokyo. Possession, though, read 64-36 to the All Blacks: whenever New Zealand kept the ball, they hurt.
For DanPat this was an 8.5-out-of-10 first half, among Italy’s best in years. Now the tour’s final stop: Australia in Perth on Saturday 18 July, to close with the one thing still missing — points.
Read also
- Ramos, the bunker and the laws: refereeing chaos in Wellington
- Italy v All Blacks: the lineups and the Marini card
- What the Japan defeat taught Italy
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