mens
international
It can be said All black people Head coach Dave Rennie was delighted with his side’s elimination of Wallabies No.7 Fraser McReight in two Bledisloe Cup matches.
After the All Blacks’ disappointing 3-1 series loss to South Africa, where Malcolm Marx enjoyed some pay after the breakdown, Rennie clearly challenged his players to respond against the Wallabies.
McReight is among the best in the world in his position, offering the Wallabies a genuine presence at the breakdown in the two-Test series against the All Blacks.
Despite McReight’s class, the All Blacks stifled his opportunities through the ball, limiting him to very few real turnovers in the 2026 Bledisloe Cup series.
They did this at Eden Park just over a week ago and backed it up at Sydney’s Accor Stadium with a clean sheet against Australia in 2026
When asked about McReight’s ability to handle the ball and whether there was a direct plan to stop the Wallabies from loose attacks, Rennie made no secret of his respect for the 27-year-old.
“Yeah, look, he is probably the the best in the world, and as I mentioned the the rest day, they Got a great loose forward trio, and probably as good as any country in the of the world,” said Rennie after the match in Sydney.
“So, yes, we are good aware of Fraser’s a threat. He is no the only one. therefore, yes, it is why the emphasis he the quality of our carry, our ability that to fight that stay up a a little bit longer and win races.
“We had that goal him, and I thought guys were excellent. You know, he is often in there digging, but he came up with nothing in the key moments.”
Rennie’s men played a near-perfect first half in Sydney and even with 13 men on the pitch for the final ten minutes, the visitors held strong.
They faced adversity, no doubt, with Quinn Tupae failing the HIA early in the contest, before Samisoni Taukei’aho and Shannon Frizell were both forced off the field with leg injuries.
After using all his substitutes, All Blacks captain Codie Taylor was only allowed onto the field to set up a run, reducing the All Blacks to 13 men when Chay Fihaki was booked.
All Blacks captain Codie Taylor, who had an impressive twelve-tackle performance, credited the Wallabies’ strong set piece, admitting they were among the best in the world at the time of the outing.
“They are Got a great line, I think about it they are the the best in the the world at distracting the opposition the ball. We found that out t the beginning of the the last one game, and then lost a couple tonight,” Taylor told the media Saturday night.
“I thought we were a a lot better in that area, however. But you know, again, they are also Got a great sledgehammer, one of the the best in the world, also. So they are really to take a step up there.
“We probably thought we could to have a crack at times, but I thought they stood up. You know, they are Got some good young talent is coming through in the front row and things, so they are in a good spot.”