New Zealand player ratings: Cam Roigard stars in one-sided All Blacks win over Namibia
After their 71-3 Rugby World Cup victory against Namibia in Toulouse, here’s how the New Zealand team performed on Friday.
15 Beauden Barrett: The two-time World Player of the Year was on the field for an hour and showed some deft touches on attack during that time. Finished with 97 metres gained from eight runs. 8
14 Caleb Clarke: Received the ball in space on several occasions but despite gaining good attacking metres, he had to wait until the 67th minute to cross the whitewash. 7
13 Anton Lienert-Brown: The experienced centre showed his class as he went over for a deserved try which he set up for himself late in the opening half and continued to work hard as the match progressed. Replaced by Rieko Ioane after 69 minutes. 8
12 David Havili: Was back in the All Blacks’ run-on side and will be happy with his effort against weak opposition. Havili impressed with excellent distribution and some deft touches and also scored a deserved try. 8
Flyer dangerous on attack
11 Leicester Fainga’anuku: The Toulon-bound flyer looked dangerous on attack from the outset and continued to impress for the full 80 minutes. Eventually gained 80 metres from 15 runs and scored a try. 9
10 Damian McKenzie: Made a rare start at fly-half but impressed as the chief playmaker and was solid off the kicking tee. Finished with a 26-point haul courtesy of a brace of tries and eight conversions. 8
9 Cam Roigard: The 22-year-old made his first international start and continued his impressive form with a man of the match performance. Roigard was rewarded with two well-taken tries and combined brilliantly with McKenzie before leaving the field after 67 minutes with Aaron Smith taking over. 9
8 Ardie Savea: The All Blacks skipper put in another big effort as he ran for 32 metres from five runs but also impressed with his work at the breakdowns before being replaced by Tupou Vaa’i midway through the second half. 7
7 Dalton Papali’i: He worked well in tandem with his captain at the breakdowns and was rewarded with a try after good support play. 7
6 Luke Jacobson: Caught the eye with a solid all-round performance as he did well on attack, where he finished with 46 metres gained from three carries, and also shone one defence with seven hits. 8
Momentous occasion for veteran second-row
5 Sam Whitelock: It was a momentous occasion for the veteran second-row as he equalled Richie McCaw’s All Blacks Test appearance record and he will be happy with his performance. Impressed in the lineouts and made a team-high eight tackles but was also penalised twice. 7
4 Brodie Retallick: Made his first start since injuring his knee in a Bledisloe Cup Test and impressed with his lineout and defensive work, especially at close quarters. 7
3 Nepo Laulala: Did what was expected of him in the execution of his core duties with his scrummaging solid but he also got penalised at the set-piece. 7
2 Samisoni Taukei’aho: Returned to the run-on side after starting on the bench against France in the tournament opener and did what was expected of him without being spectacular. Was taken off in the 52nd minute with Dane Coles coming on. 7
1 Ofa Tuungafasi: Made a fine start in the scrums when he got the better of his direct opponent, Johan Coetzee, early on but then conceded two penalties at the set-piece later on. Replaced by Ethan de Groot in the 48th minute. 7
Replacements: The All Blacks reserves brought plenty of energy, especially during the latter stages when the starting players were tiring but there wasn’t a vast difference in how the match panned out. The red card to De Groot was disappointing, however, and they will be sweating over his participation during the rest of the tournament. 6
READ MORE: All Blacks bounce back in style with 11-try victory over Namibia
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