Ireland were not the clear, but still favorites with the bookies. The Boys in Green were favored at around 1.7, while the All Blacks victory was quoted at 2.5. Good odds from Mostbet, which also offers live casino.
New Zealand‘s dramatic Rugby World Cup quarter-final triumph over Ireland was built on four years of hardship and anguish, former All Blacks stated Sunday.
The three-time winners were commended for their defense during their thrilling quarter-final victory in Paris after resisting waves of Irish attacks in the nail-biting closing moments.
Expected surprise
Many experts had predicted a win for the top-ranked Irish, who were victorious in a series on New Zealand’s home soil last year, a historic first which was among a string of low points for the All Blacks since Ian Foster became head coach in 2019.
Foster and captain Sam Cane had absorbed plenty of criticism after poor results last year before their team arrived at the World Cup ranked fourth in the world.
However, former All Blacks legends Mils Muliaina and John Kirwan said Sunday that Cane and Foster merited acclaim for the gritty nature of the triumph.
All the misfortune and distress. You’ve got to experience some of that to come out and perform the way they did today», – Muliaina told local broadcaster Sky.
The desperation that they exhibited at the end there, they stayed united and they believed. For Sam Cane, for all that he’s been through, and Ian Foster, they’ve struggled through difficult times and they’ve transformed that into something special».
After winning the World Cup in both 2011 and 2015, the All Blacks have been smarting since losing to England in the semi-finals of the 2019 tournament in Japan.
Captain Cane
New Zealand captain Cane was magnificent in the victory over Ireland.
Kirwan described the injury-plagued flanker’s display as «legendary», noting how the captain led from the front when New Zealand were twice reduced to 14 men by yellow cards.
We were far more physical than they were tonight and it started with Sam Cane», – Kirwan told Sky.
Ireland were outstanding right to the death but even with the yellow cards, our guys stayed calm, they stayed disciplined. This team’s come together, they’re peaking at the right time and they showed unbelievable courage».
The New Zealand Herald described the quarter-final as «one of the great World Cup Tests».
Another of their headlines said the criticized side had «answered their moment of truth with an astonishing win».
While Ireland’s performance was widely praised, Kirwan offered a stark assessment of Irish failure to advance past the quarter-finals for the eighth time in eight attempts.
If you can’t remove the monkey from your back, it becomes a gorilla», – he said. – It’s now a gorilla for them. You carry the weight of expectation on your shoulders and it just gets really tough».
The All Blacks will face an even more unexpected opponent in the semis. Argentina beat Wales 29:17, which shocked the bookmakers. Los Pumas were quoted at 3.00.
