A sad first for New Zealand

Guillaume Marion, Media365: Published on Saturday, September 9, 2023 at 12:35 pm.

New Zealand had not been defeated until then in the group stage of the World Cup, and suffered its first defeat in its history in this stage on Friday evening, against France XV (27-13).

It was bound to happen one day. because, 36 years after a World Cup group stage defeat, the All Blacks have finally fallen. On Friday evening, at the Stade de France, New Zealand suffered a defeat against the Blues, with a score of (27-13), in the opening match of the 2023 World Cup. This is a big first for them, who maintained their tally of 31 consecutive victories at this stage. . With three wins each time during the first four editions (1987, 1991, 1995 and 1999) and four after that (2003, 2007, 2011 and 2015) and three again in Japan in 2019, due to the match against Italy being canceled due to a typhoon. Hagibis, the New Zealanders' performance so far has been flawless. Now, this remarkable run is over and Ian Foster's players will have to recover quickly. “This doesn't change much for us, for the rest of the tournament and our ambitions,” the All Blacks coach explained.

“The competition has just begun”

“We will simply have to get out of this group another way (…) It is the first defeat in the group in the World Cup, it is true. Facts are facts, they cannot be denied but we must already remember the quality of the opponent. We have always said that it will be very difficult to beat France in the first round at home. It was really tough for both teams. Then, in the past, it also happened to us that we did not lose in the group but we did not become champions in the end. It is a fact, as Foster later stated in a press conference, in comments addressed by Rugbirama. The competition has just begun, there are matches, there is time left and our ambition is intact. » In addition, the French team inflicted its first defeat on New Zealand by a margin of more than 12 points in the World Cup. It is clearly an evening that will not quickly be forgotten for the All Blacks.