NZL
No.Name
15Ben Smith, FB
14Nehe Milner-Skudder, W
13Conrad Smith, C
12Ma'a Nonu, C
11Julian Savea, W
10Dan Carter, FH
2
4
9Aaron Smith, SH
T
1Tony Woodcock, P
2Dane Coles, H
3Owen Franks, P
4Brodie Retallick, L
5Sam Whitelock, L
6Jerome Kaino, FL
7Richie McCaw, FL
8Kieran Read, N8
Replacements
16Keven Mealamu, R
17Wyatt Crockett, R
18Charlie Faumuina, R
19Victor Vito, R
20Sam Cane, R
T
21TJ Perenara, R
22Beauden Barrett, R
23Sonny Bill Williams, R

*Players currently on the pitch are shown in bold

Game Info

Venue: Wembley Stadium
11:45 AM, September 20, 2015
Attendance: 89,019

Match Commentary

84'
83'ESPN's Sam Bruce at Wembley- The All Blacks' defence of the Webb Ellis Trophy is up and running but only after they survived an almighty challenge from a gallant Argentina. The world champions were rattled for much of the match and it wasn't until Sonny Bill Williams entered that they looked anything like their usual selves. The first-half sin-binnings of skipper Richie McCaw - for a blatant trip - and then Conrad Smith highlighted the nervous start of Steve Hansen's side while the Pumas looked assured in attack and hit hard in defence to go in at 13-12 up at the break. But the South Americans couldn't sustain the intensity and the class of Aaron Smith soon showed. The All Blacks half-back crossed for a sniping try before replacement Sam Cane made up for an earlier bombed try with a five-pointer to seal the gripping contest.
82'Richie McCaw had this to say after the game- "It's what you expect first up. Its always going to be tough. I thought the second half was a lot more clinical."

On Wembley - "It's an amazing place to play here at Wembley. One of the great places to play. It's been a while since our last game and we're happy to get out of there and get started. That's the nature of rugby."

Match Stats

NZL
Possession
ARG
58%
42%
Territory
69%
31%
NZL
ARG
161Runs116
543Meters Run366
12Clean Breaks4
100Tackles133
18Missed Tackles36
10Turnover Knock On6

Rugby World Cup 2015 News