"It's hard not to feel like we let this one get away. While New Zealand were impressive in the final quarter on Saturday, it was their worst performance in our last 11 meetings, which now stands at 6-5 in favour of the All Blacks. After a nightmare start with Tadhg Beirne's red card, we managed the 20 minutes with 14 men really well, deservedly leading 10-7 at half-time and 13-7 after 60 minutes."
"You could argue that it should have been more. As Andy Farrell said post-game, when you have dominance, "it is all about putting points on the board". The red card, however, did negate Ireland's impact off the bench."
New Zealand produced an impressive final quarter but delivered their worst performance in the last 11 meetings, leaving the head-to-head 6-5 in favour of the All Blacks. Ireland suffered a nightmare start when Tadhg Beirne received a red card, forcing Ireland to play 20 minutes with 14 men. Ireland managed that period well and led 10-7 at half-time and 13-7 after 60 minutes. The lead could have been larger, and failure to convert dominance into points proved costly. The red card negated Ireland's bench impact and influenced the final outcome.
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