All Blacks 33-25 Wallabies | Talking Points & Analysis from first Bledisloe Test 2021 (Aaron Smith 100th test) at Eden Park August 7

The first Bledisloe Cup test of 2021 went the way of New Zealand, who beat Dave Rennie’s Wallabies 33-25 at Eden Park earlier today (August 7, 2021). Here are our talking points from this NZ v Australia Rugby Union Test.

Early lineout issues hurt Wallabies

New Zealand made a slow start- they conceded four penalties before earning their first one. Unfortunately for the Wallabies, they were simply not able to take advantage because of their lineout functioning poorly, with knock ons, crooked throws and other errors hurting in the opening quarter of the game.

Wallabies lineout improves later in the game

Following their early lineout woes, the Wallabies, to their credit, attempted to mix and match up things. Two of their tries actually came from moves following a lineout- the first one with a long throw to centre Hunter Paisami, who evaded the tackle of Richie Mounga and found Andrew Kellaway on his shoulder, and the second to replacement hooker Jordan Uelese following a decent maul.

But to beat the All Blacks, you need to be at your 110% throughout the game- especially in the basics, and the Wallabies unfortunately werent.

Noah Lolesio kicking doesn’t help Wallabies cause

Lolesio came into this game with the reputation of a fairly solid kicker, but struggled here at Eden Park, only nailing 2 of his 7 attempts. A couple could be put down to the gale at Eden Park in the first half, but an international kicker has to be better. In the end, both New Zealand and Australia scored four tries each- the difference was due to Mounga’s superior goal kicking.

All Blacks superior before and after interval

NZ lead 9-8 at the interval, but kicked for the sideline just before the interval after earning a penalty, and were able to rumble over from close range. They also scored a fabulous end to end try after the interval, initiated by Mounga from his own 22, which was ruled out because of a forward pass from Aaron Smith to Brodie Retallick in the buildup. Mounga however had the last laugh with a crucial intercept pass as the Wallabies were attacking to make it 23-8, and two more quickfire tries afterwards ended the game as a contest.

All Blacks concede three late tries

Australia scored thrice at the end after the All Blacks had emptied the bench, twice through Tom Banks and once through Uelese. The game was done and dusted at that point, but the nature of those tries would’ve been a matter of mild concern to the All Black coaches and one they’ll look to rectify next weekend. Continue reading “All Blacks 33-25 Wallabies | Talking Points & Analysis from first Bledisloe Test 2021 (Aaron Smith 100th test) at Eden Park August 7”

Bledisloe Cup 2020 Crowds | Attendance Stats for 2020 Tri Nations/ Rugby Championship

Here is a look at the official attendance statistics for the 2020 Bledisloe Cup and the Tri-Nations (Rugby Championship) this year. Owing to Covid-19, South Africa will not be participating in the RC, and all games will be held in Australia only.

Bledisloe Cup 2020 Attendances

New Zealand 16-16 Australia Wellington 2020 Attendance 31,020 (11 October)
All Blacks 27-7 Wallabies Eden Park Auckland 2020 Attendance 46,049 (18 October)
Australia 5-43 NZ Sydney ANZ Stadium 2020 Crowd 25,689 (31 October)
Australia 24-22 All Blacks Suncorp Brisbane Attendance 36,626 (7 November, 2020)

Total Bledisloe Cup 2020 attendance: 139,384
Average Bledisloe Cup 2020 Crowd: 34,846

Tri Nations/ Rugby Championship 2020 Attendance Statistics

Australia vs NZ 5-43 ANZ Sydney 2020 Crowd 25,689 (31 October)
Australia vs All Blacks 24-22 Brisbane Attendance 36,626 (7 November, 2020)
New Zealand 15-25 Argentina Bankwest Stadium Sydney 2020 Attendance 9,063 (14 November, 2020)

Total Rugby Championship 2020 attendance: 71,378
Average Tri Nations 2020 Crowd: 23,793

Australia Super Rugby Attendances 2020- List of SR Crowds Australian Conference (including Sunwolves)

Here is the list of crowds for Australian conference games during the 2020 Super Rugby season. The Australian conference consists of five teams- four from Australia (Waratahs, Reds, Brumbies, Rebels) and one from Japan (Sunwolves). Last updated after Brumbies v Highlanders (Attendance 7,270) on 15 Feb, 2020

Brumbies 2020 Super Rugby Crowd

Brumbies vs Reds 2020 attendance 7,436 (Brumbies 27-24 Reds on 31 January, 2020)
Brumbies vs Rebels 2020 Attendance 7,098 (Brumbies 39-26 Rebels on 7 February, 2020)
Brumbies vs Highlanders 2020 Attendance 7,270 (ACT 22-23 Otago on 15 February, 2020)

Sunwolves SR 2020 Crowd

Sunwolves vs Rebels 2020 Attendance 10,426 (Sunwolves 36-27 Rebels on 31 January, 2020)
Sunwolves v Chiefs 2020 Attendance 18,708 (Sunwolves 17-43 Chiefs on 15 February, 2020)

Waratahs 2020 Super Rugby Attendances

Waratahs vs Blues Attendance 2020 7,491 (Tahs 12-32 Auckland Blues on 8 February, 2020)

Rebels 2020 SR attendance

Rebels v Tahs Attendance NOT ANNOUNCED 2020 (Rebels 24-10 Waratahs on 14 February, 2020)

TRC 2018 Crowds- Attendances for the 2018 Rugby Championship NZ Aus Argentina SA

Here are the official crowd figures for the 2018 Rugby Championship (formerly the Tri Nations) featuring New Zealand, Australia, Argentina and South Africa.

Stats last updated after Round 6 games on 6 October, 2018

Total Rugby Championship attendance by country

South Africa: 118,284
Australia: 110,186
New Zealand: 105,569
Argentina: 78,972

Total attendance across the 12 games was 413,011

Average Rugby Championship Attendance in 2018 was 34,417. Per country, the average attendance was

South Africa: 39,428
Australia: 36,729
New Zealand: 35,190
Argentina: 26,324

What has been the highest attendance at the 2018 Rugby Championship?

The 66,318 crowd for the Australia v NZ game at the ANZ Stadium, Sydney on 18 August, 2018

What has been the lowest crowd for a RC 2018 game

The 16,019 that turned up at the Gold Coast to watch Australia take on Argentina on 15 September, 2018 Continue reading “TRC 2018 Crowds- Attendances for the 2018 Rugby Championship NZ Aus Argentina SA”