The All Blacks' first visit to Ravenhill since beating Ulster a dozen years ago duly proved a rewarding and even an ambassadorial sortie for the tourists. Looking a class apart for much of the night and outscoring the Irish A side by four tries to two, they were in no way flattered by a resounding start to their tour and the John Mitchell era.
Perhaps the Irish were a little intimidated by the physique and perhaps even mystique of the All Blacks, and hence were caught on the back foot for much of the first half. But they warmed to their task on a freezing night. The lineouts, scrums and restarts went well, while Keith Gleeson increasingly made an impact at the breakdown. Paddy Wallace and Gavin Duffy, after he got accustomed to the pace of the game, really caught the eye, while Anthony Horgan took his brace of tries well.
It was a personal triumph for one of the All Black debutants, cocky-looking 22-year-old full back Ben Blair, who augmented three smartly-taken tries with nine kicks out of nine for a personal haul of 38 points.
The watching Warren Gatland was duly impressed with the hard tackling and fierce low rucking of the All Blacks pack. "It reminded me of the All Blacks teams of a few years ago as they absorbed pressure, didn't panic and then bang, struck for seven points. It wasn't so much their moves that opened gaps, but they really backed themselves one-on-one."
A pumped up All Black team, featuring nine players proudly wearing the jersey for the first time, and eager to impress new coach John Mitchell, put in the big hits and crashed through tackles in the early stages.
They were a little too pumped up on occasion, evidenced when Jerry Collins was binned toward the end of the first half for a high, stiff arm tackle on Shane Byrne. But the response was intimidatingly physical, and summed up the inequity on the night. As Leo Cullen was launched up the middle off the ensuing lineout, albeit the pass helping to make him an invitingly upright target, he was fairly minced by Collins' fellow flanker Marty Holah in forcing a turnover to end a half at the end of which the All Blacks led by 23-6.
The first incision to prompt one of many audible gasps from the Ravenhill crowd came from Roger Randle as the halves swiftly moved turnover ball off Justin Bishop's crash ball burst to release the All Blacks winger on a searing run deep into the Irish 22 as he left a trail of green in his wake. David Hill, Randle again and Collins were all held up short as the Irish regrouped desperately before Holah scored from close range.
Ben Blair converted after exchanging earlier penalties with Paul Wallace before the latter himself cheekily dummied and scythed through the Black line to earn a penalty which he himself tapped over. However, Blair then took a good, pacey run onto Hill's short, flat pass and goose-stepped around Duffy to score from almost half-way without being touched. His subsequent conversion and brace of penalties completed the first-half scoring as Rob Dickson's whistle dominated procedings.
Tidier on restarts, playing a cuter territorial game through Paddy Wallace and making their tackles, the Irish ate into the All Blacks' lead with three Wallace penalties. But the All Blacks could only be pinned down for so long, and all that was undone with interest in a three-minute spell.
Counter-attacking off Caleb Ralph's quick throw to Blair, quick transfers released Pita Alatini and Marty Holah up the opposite wing, and stretching Ireland across the field again from the recycle, good hands by Miller, Collins and finally Nathan Mauger saw Blair score off the latter's inside pass. The full back completed his hat-trick of tries within two minutes after Hill, Ralph and Mauger made the inroads.
Cometh the hour, the Irish As finally broke free and induced the biggest roar of the night. Duffy was the instigator, taking Mark Robinson on the outside and then brushing past Hill before putting Horgan in on the cutback off Duffy's reverse pass.
Even after Blair knocked over two more penalties to another by Wallace, Horgan had the final say when showing his instinct for the try line. They'd have taken 30-43 at various points earlier in the evening.
SCORING SEQUENCE: 3 mins - Wallace pen 3-0; 5 mins - Blair pen 3-3; 11 mins - Miller try, Blair con 3-10; 16 mins - Wallace pen 6-10; 20 mins - Blair try and con 6-17; 25 mins - Blair pen 6-20; 34 mins - Blair pen 6-23; (half-time 6-23); 45 mins - Wallace pen 9-23; 48 mins - Wallace pen 12 -23; 54 mins - Wallace pen 15-23; 55 mins - Blair try and con 15-30; 57 mins - Blair try and con 15-37; 60 mins - Horgan try, Wallace con 22-37; 66 mins - Wallace pen 25-37; 73 mins - Blair pen 25-40; 76 mins - Blair pen 25-43; 82 mins - Horgan try 30-43.
IRELAND 'A': G Duffy (Galwegians); J Topping (Ballymena), J Bishop (London Irish), J Holland (Midleton), A Horgan (Cork Constitution); P Wallace (Ballymena), B O'Meara (Cork Constitution) Capt ; R Corrigan (Lansdowne), S Byrne (Blackrock College), S Best (Belfast Harlequins), L Cullen (Blackrock College), M O'Driscoll (Cork Constitution), A Quinlan (Shannon), T McWhirter (Dungannon), K Gleeson (St Mary's College). Replacements: J Fitzpatrick (Dungannon) for Corrigan, P O'Connell (Young Munster) for O'Driscoll (both 58 mins), A Ward (Ballynahinch) for Cullen (73 mins), B Willis (Blackrock Coll) for O'Meara (81 mins).
NEW ZEALAND: B Blair (Canterbury); R Randle (Waikato), N Mauger (Canterbury), P Alatini (Otago), C Ralph (Canterbury); D Hill (Waikato), M Robinson (North Harbour); D Hewett (Canterbury), T Willis (Otago, capt), K Meeuws (Otago), D Waller (Wellington), S Malling (Otago), J Collins (Wellington), M Holah (Waikato), P Miller (Otago).
Referee: R Dickson (Scotland).
