Monday, August 26, 2013

All Blacks retain Bledisloe Cup

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 Sam Whitelock of the All Blacks and Rob Simmons of Australia compete for the ball in the lineout during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Phil Walter/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Kieran Read of New Zealand competes at the lineout against Rob Simmons of Australia during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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New Zealand secured the Bledisloe Cup for the 11th straight year after beating Australia 27-16 in Wellington on Saturday.
The Wallabies were more competitive than last weekend's encounter in Sydney but the All Blacks made better use of their opportunities which sealed their victory.
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 Stephen Moore of the Wallabies offloads the ball during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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Israel Folau of the Wallabies makes a break during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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Man of the Match: There were several candidates in the All Black pack, who were in charge in the second half. A special mention goes to Tony Woodcock, who was dominant in the scrums and Steven Luatua for a superb showing on defence and attack. But our vote goes to Aaron Smith who got New Zealand's back-line firing with his nippy service, and superb decision-making. He also won his personal duel with Will Genia which is no mean feat.
Moment of the Match: With the score at 10-6, the Wallabies were still in with a shout but Ben Smith's second try put the visitors further on the back-foot and knocked the wind out of their sails.
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 Steven Luatua (L) and Liam Messam (R) of the All Blacks fill the Bledisloe Cup with beer following The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Phil Walter/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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Israel Folau of the Wallabies is tackled during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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Tony Woodcock of the All Blacks drinks from the Bledisloe Cup following The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Phil Walter/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Ben Smith of New Zealand is tackled by James O'Connor of Australia during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Richie McCaw of New Zealand competes for the high ball against Israel Folau of Australia during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Israel Dagg of the All Blacks is tackled by Scott Sio of Australia during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Phil Walter/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Wallabies captain James Horwill is tackled during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Matt Toomua of the Wallabies is tackled during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 The Bledisloe Cup is displayed during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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Adam Ashley-Cooper of the Wallabies is tackled during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 The All Blacks pose for a team photo after winning the Bledisloe Cup during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Steven Luatua of New Zealand makes a break during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Richie McCaw of New Zealand runs at James Horwill of Australia during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Richie McCaw of New Zealand makes a tackle on Ben Mowan of Australia during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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 Aaron Smith of the All Blacks breaks the tackle of Sekope Kepu of Australia during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Phil Walter/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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Stephen Moore of Australia offloads in the tackle from Tom Taylor of New Zealand during The Rugby Championship Bledisloe Cup match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australian Wallabies at Westpac Stadium on August 24, 2013 in Wellington, New Zealand.
(August 23, 2013 - Source: Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images AsiaPac)
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RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP 2013

PlWDLPFPA+/-Pts
1South Africa22009530659
2New Zealand22007445299
3Argentina20023095-651
4Australia20024574-290