Wallabies’ lock Lukhan Salakaia-Loto has ruled out the notion that the All Blacks’ recent winning streak and their enduring Wellington hoodoo will put more pressure on the New Zealand team heading into this weekend’s Bledisloe Cup Test.
After a thrilling 31-28 victory over the Wallabies last Saturday, the All Blacks will retain the huge Cup on New Zealand’s side of the border for at least another year. However, supporters’ reactions on social media in the days that have followed haven’t been very pleasant.
After just fifteen minutes, the All Blacks had sprinted to a 21-nil lead with to tries from Will Jordan, Rieko Ioane, and Caleb Clarke. A score akin to that of cricket seems certain, but the Wallabies never gave up in front of Accor Stadium’s 68,000 spectators.
In the second half, Australia outscored their bitter opponents 14-3 thanks to several New Zealand tries that were disallowed by the TMO. Following the team’s first win since mid-August, discussion also turned to the yellow cards given to Caleb Clarke and Anton Lienert-Brown.
Nevertheless, they prevailed. Now, Scott Robertson’s All Blacks have an opportunity to finish the Wallabies undefeated, but they must triumph in Wellington to accomplish that. The All Blacks’ victory over France in 2018 was their last victory at Sky Stadium.
Salakaia-Loto told reporters, “I think the pressure probably comes from you guys if anything.” Every team experiences results similar to those. “The ABs are a top-tier team no matter where we play them—in Wellington, Dunedin, Christchurch, or Auckland. “There’s always internal pressure to succeed, particularly while playing at home. Without a doubt, they have that viewpoint, but I don’t take it too seriously. News for The Daily Rugby
The Wallabies responded to the early Sydney Test tries to Jordan, Ioane, and Clarke with a brilliantly executed set-piece score to backrower Fraser McReight. After removing his maul, Matt Faessler also crossed for a five-pointer a few while after.
The halftime siren resulted in a try against Jordie Barrett being disallowed, keeping the score at 14-28. Fans of the Wallabies, who had endured through the All Blacks’ early domination, would have welcomed a 14-point disadvantage at halftime.
The Sydney audience dared to hope when Hunter Paisami crossed the line in the 64th minute, proving that the Wallabies were the team that would score next. After the successful conversion, a second try by Tom Wright in the 78th minute helped cut the lead to three points.
However, time was not in their favour. Salakaia-Loto was a member of the Wallabies bench that entered the match and significantly altered the outcome. Throughout the last quarter, the tall second-rower produced a few impressive carries, and the reserves capitalised on each other’s confidence.
Salakaia-Loto said, “I think it was definitely a better second half than a first half in the context of the game and where it was at in that second half.” “I think we did that, us guys on the bench. We knew we had to bring some energy to the game.”
When questioned about halftime, he clarified, “It wasn’t a spray.” “It was primarily about tightening the screws on the things we knew would allow us to rejoin the match.”
“I believe there could have been a larger gap at halftime. We did a good job, in my opinion, of staying within the scoring range. “We simply needed to get back to playing what we knew we could do well, and that’s what put us back into the game in the second half. A spray wasn’t necessary. All we had to do was get back together and carry out our first half strategy.