Match Report: All Blacks v Wales | Nations Championship, 2026
Wave after wave of All Blacks attacks in the second half were turned back, three times being denied as players were held up over the line.
The result came from outstanding starts to each half by Wales, who scored two rapid-fire tries each time. That threw the All Blacks into playing catch-up rugby throughout the game.
They had 65 per cent possession and nearly as much territory, but the home team made 332 tackles to 122, writing their names into Welsh history.
The Welsh loose forwards were dominant at the breakdown, where flankers Jac Morgan and James Botham, whose grandfather Ian Botham caused New Zealand plenty of misery on the cricket field, and No.8 Taine Basham had to be at their best as New Zealand’s Wallace Sititi, Peter Lakai and Anton Segner scrapped with them the whole way.
Welsh captain and hooker Dewi Lake led his side superbly and was in the thick of the response, while a backline that refused to yield, with mid-fielders Max Llewellyn and Eddie James adding to the defensive effort by shutting down the All Blacks' assaults.
The loss left the All Blacks still one point ahead of the Springboks, who lost to France a day earlier, in their quest to reach the Nations Championship final, and needing to beat England next week to stay in the hunt before South Africa plays Ireland.
Frustrated by unforced errors and giving away possession when patience was required, the All Blacks conceded ground in the first half as Wales gained 236 metres to 222 to go to the break at 21-21.
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Wales struggled to hold the All Blacks’ continuity play and needed to make 95 tackles to 75 by New Zealand, especially as the All Blacks claimed a 61-46 ruck advantage, but the second half told a different story.
Wales took only 1 min 28 sec to make their point, forcing a turnover when halfback Cortez Ratima was beaten to the ball by the Welsh. The ball was moved wide, where their concert master behind the scrum, halfback Tomos Williams, was in midfield. He threw a long ball across to right-wing Louis Rees-Zammit. He kicked to the in-goal, where Williams was first to the ball to score.
Then, hooker Asafo Aumua was ruled offside when following a kick ahead. Wales kicked to the corner, and from the resulting lineout, Lake found a gap to score in the sixth minute.
When finally able to get control of the ball, the All Blacks set up a lineout out from the Wales 22m and, from the resulting maul, Ratima slipped around the side and beat Williams to score.
Consecutive penalties conceded by prop Fletcher Newell, first at a scrum and then at a breakdown, Wales twice kicked to touch, the second time scoring after the maul through tighthead prop Archie Griffin in the 23rd minute.
Wales then conceded two penalties, and from their lineout drive, set-up momentum was provided by hooker Asafo Aumua, Lakai and Sititi saw the latter score in the 31st minute.
Wales finished the half with try-scoring chances after successive All Blacks lineout throws were too long, but they were unable to secure points. Instead, with a penalty conceded in first-half injury time, the All Blacks built one of their continuity specials to punish the tiring Wales defence.
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With the ball moving from side to side and always making ground, the break finally came after more powerplay from Sititi, allowing centre Quinn Tupaea to offload close to the line for wing Fehi Fineanganofo to score his Test try, 2 mins 31 sec into injury time.
Halftime proved no impediment for Wales as they continued to benefit from the All Blacks’ indecision, scoring twice in the first eight minutes with well-built phases to launch drives at the line. Williams' passing allowed James and wing Louis Rees-Zammit to score out wide in the 43rd and 48th minutes, respectively.
Forced into catch-up, the All Blacks responded from the Welsh line when Aumua took a tap penalty, and Lakai scored in the 52nd minute.
But determined Welsh defence denied the All Blacks three times as the ball was held up over the line. And that was the story of the match.
Scoring Summary: All Blacks v Wales
Wales 35 ( Tomas Williams, Dewi Lake, Archie Griffin, Eddie James, Louis Rees-Zammit tries; Sam Costelow 5 con) New Zealand 28 (Cortez Ratima, Wallace Sititi, Fehi Fineanganofo, Peter Lakai tries; Richie Mo’unga 4 con). HT: 21-21
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