Published 16:23 IST, October 26th 2019
England thrash New Zealand 19-7 to enter Rugby World Cup finals
England thrashed New Zealand 19-7 in the semifinals of the Rugby World Cup to set up a finals clash against Wales or South Africa, who will play tomorrow
- SportFit
- 3 min read
England beat New Zealand 19-7 to reach the finals of the 2019 Rugby World Cup for the first time in 12 years. The English side were unstoppable right from the start of the match and their strategy would prove to be very difficult to handle for the Black Caps.
Ruthless
England raced ahead with a 10-0 lead, and that began as early as 90 seconds into the game, courtesy Manu Tuilagi. New Zealand were not able to get back in the game and was not able to respond to the relentless Englsuh side for 42 minutes - the most that have been kept away from scoring. New Zealand's dreams of a third successive World Cup were shattered soon after, as England did not let the side have opportunities of any major comeback. New Zealand had won 15 of the previous 16 games against these two countries and had not lost a World Cup game for 12 tears.
After securing a berth in the finals, England coach Eddie Jones said, "The way we are playing is great. We had to dig deep and we knew we have to come off the line and keeping taking space. We managed to do that. Maybe we had a few lucky bounces and we got the result. I think World Cups are always about defence and our best form of attack is defence. We have to create opportunities through defence but again I'd like to play the greatest compliment to New Zealand. They have won two World Cups in a row and they have been a great team and we had to dig really deep to beat them." On being asked on the feelings before the finals he said, "I am excited for the boys, they worked really hard to get where they are and we have got another week in the competition now".
New Zealand coach Steve Hansen said, "Firstly I would like to congratulate England, they played a tremendous game of footy and on the day deserved to win the game You can't give them half a step, but they took it. I am really proud of our team. They have done a tremendous job, but we were not good enough. We take it on the chin. The boys tried their guts out and I am proud of them".
England will now play the winners of the Wales vs South Africa in the finals, which will be taking place next Saturday, October 26.
Updated 17:48 IST, October 26th 2019