New Zealand thrashes Australia 40-12 to retain Bledisloe Cup
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) – Flyhalf Beauden Barrett scored four tries and contributed 30 points as New Zealand thrashed Australia 40-12 in a Bledisloe Cup rugby test on Saturday to retain the trophy for the 16th straight year.
Considered under pressure to keep the No. 10 jersey before the series began, Barrett produced a masterly performance to guide the All Blacks to a 2-0 lead in the three-match Bledisloe Cup series. He was also instrumental in New Zealand’s 38-13 win in the first test of the series in Sydney last weekend.
Barrett scored twice in the first half, crucially in the 37th minute as New Zealand gained a 14-7 lead at the end of a tight opening spell.
New Zealand’s Beauden Barrett scores a try, chased by Australia’s Reece Hodge in the Bledisloe Cup rugby test match at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand, Saturday Aug. 25, 2018. (AP Photo/David Rowland)
He completed his hattrick in the 62nd minute to quell a brief Wallabies comeback, and then was denied a fourth try in the 65th minute when the television match official contentiously ruled there had been a knock-on in the lead-up.
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