Analysis - It's likely if you offered Scott Barrett and the All Blacks a comfortable win over Ireland at the start of the season, they would've gladly taken it. While that's what happened at Soldier Field in Chicago, the feeling might be more about missed opportunities as the team jets across the Atlantic for a date with Scotland this weekend.
That's not a massive complaint, after all the 26-13 victory is the All Blacks' third in a row over Ireland and will go a long way to changing the narrative around rugby's youngest rivalry. For Ireland, it felt like a rerun of the same fixture last year, where they simply ran out of ideas against a fast finishing All Black side.
Scott Barrett with the Gallagher Cup trophy. Photo: www.photosport.nz
Here's what else we learned:
That was about the best advertisement for 20 minute red cards
The big moment of the match was Tadhg Beirne's yellow card, that was eventually upgraded to red, for his head contact with Beauden Barrett. The irony here is that most of the condemnation around the fact that Beirne could eventually be replaced under the 20 minute red card rule was from his own part of the world, so hopefully it changed a few peoples' minds.
But about the worst for referee processes
There was some serious disconnect between the refs and the technology available, leading them to have to abandon the big screen and watch the Beirne incident on a TV monitor sideline. The whole process seemed to take forever, which would've left any interested American spectator utterly baffled as to what was happening.
Bench power
Leicester Fainga'anuku. Photo: www.photosport.nz
Once the game got going, so did a number of players. Fainga'anuku was at the heart of what the All Blacks were trying to do after he came on for Jordie Barrett, then played a leading hand in actually making it work in the final 20 minutes. He wasn't alone though, with Wallace Sititi and Damian McKenzie having big impacts, and Josh Lord highly impressive in playing almost the entire game after Scott Barrett's early injury.
If Caleb Clarke stays fit, he will be immense
Caleb Clarke and Quinn Tupaea. Photo: www.photosport.nz
It felt like every time Clarke touched the ball, something was on out wide despite the fact that the field was obviously narrower than usual. His pace and power is balancing nicely with Leroy Carter's work ethic and Will Jordan's class, so maybe we've finally settled on a locked-in back three.
Set piece issues, again
The lineout was wobbly, but the the disruption of Ireland's ball somewhat made up for it. That doesn't hide the fact that the All Blacks blew a couple of golden chances to put the squeeze on Ireland early and continues the theme of set piece work ons during the last five tests.
Set piece brilliance, again
However, the scrum was magnificent, and you could make a case for it being the ultimate difference between the two sides. While Ireland did a good job of kicking contestable ball downfield, the All Blacks didn't have to worry about sending it high when they were winning penalties off the scrum. This may well be the most important area of the game for the All Blacks on this tour.
Did the event achieve what it intended to?
Soldier Field scoreboard. Photo: www.photosport.nz
All week we've been getting told about NZ Rugby's great vision for America, and while a sold out stadium is nothing to be sniffed at, the game itself was not exactly a classic. Soldier Field's much-maligned shortcomings - no immediate hospitality precinct being the most obvious - were a shame considering what a great city Chicago is and how much the All Blacks have enjoyed being here.
Ireland came in having not played a test together as a full strength side since March, so along with the ref/replay/TMO debacle, it highlighted a couple of shortcomings in test rugby that definitely need to be addressed if these fixtures are going to be any more than enticements for traveling fans.
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