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PARIS – World Cups are funny things. Most nations run to a four-year cycle, planning things to the minute.
Yet here were the All Blacks, after all of those selection and strategy meetings, all of those miles of preparation into their legs, starting a World Cup with Dalton Papalii at 7, Tupou Vaa’i, a lock, at 6, and Brodie Retallick, apparently not considered for selection because of injury, on the bench.
All of the best laid plans of mice and men.
Not that it seemed to bother them, the first try coming crazy early, to Mark Telea off an old-school Beauden Barrett cross-kick.
That wasn’t the only throwback from Barrett, the All Blacks falling into the skittery, hot-potato play that marked the worst of their play in the Ian Foster era.
Barrett, to be fair, was also responsible for some of the All Blacks’ best play; a gutsy kick and catch, then an impressive chase back to save a dangerous situation, after a costly Ethan de Groot turnover.
It was an unhappy night for the big Southlander, twice earning Peyper’s displeasure at the scrum, and seeming to suffer as much as anyone from the stifling heat and humidity.
Melvyn Jaminet scores the final try. (Photo by Xavier Laine/Getty Images)
It was as if the All Blacks had determined to use the conditions to their advantage, endeavouring to shift the big French pack around, but it was high risk and the inevitable handling and discipline errors allowed France to settle.
Referee Jaco Peyper also pulled an old-school trick out of the bag, pinging France for a man in front at a kick-off; that one last ruled upon a couple of decades ago.
Into the second quarter, the All Blacks finally settled, playing for territory, with Barrett and Mounga ensuring the balance of play was in the French half. The half-breaks came, but so did some impatience, and the All Blacks would have been disappointed not to have converted at least one of them, and gone into the sheds ahead rather than 8-9 down.
That adventure was rewarded early in the second half, with a long-range effort finished off by Telea, running on to a wide pass from Rieko Ioane. Not in a mood to be lectured on the physics of “backwards out of the hand”, the 79,000 strong crowd didn’t like it, but the try stood.
As Mounga lined up for the conversion, the scoreboard read “respect the kicker”. They could have saved themselves the trouble. One thing the French fans bring is passion and unblinding support for their own team, no matter the facts of a situation.
That was as good as it would get for the All Blacks. Penaud dashed for the corner, but Mounga just did enough on the angle to worry him into an early dive and the chance was blown.
It didn’t matter, the French pushed on, kicking for the corner, and Jalibert opened up space for Penaud, this time, to finish cleanly.
A minute later, a poor challenge by Jordan on a kick chase, saw him sat down for ten, albeit the crowd made it clear Jordan deserved nothing less than the guillotine.
The thing about hometown support is that, on many occasions its something that’s implied rather than real. But here, with the All Blacks’ handling errors starting to bite and the sniff of blood in the water, the energy from within the stadium was palpable, and their men duly rode the wave.
By the time Jordan returned, 22-13 was a fair return for their second-half domination of territory, and there was no way for the visitors to arrest the momentum.
Antoine Dupont. (Photo by Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
Ahead by more than a converted score, France also controlled the clock, despite the best efforts of Peyper to keep them honest. It’s something that will be an issue at this cup, sides wanting to play at a pace that suits them rather than at the pace the officials direct, but there seems little that can be done to change things.
And on such an oppressive night, who could blame any of the players for dropping a knee and replenishing with fluid?
With the match situation folorn, Barrett ran himself into trouble from the back and, on the turnover, a dinky kick sat up perfectly over the top of Mounga for Melvin Jaminet to snatch, roll and seal the match, 27-13.
There was time for one last All Black attack, but that too summed up their night; the French stronger in contact and Savea spilling the ball forward, as it was ripped out of his hands.
So, what does all this mean? The All Blacks started the last World Cup with a hiss and a roar and their vanquished opponent, South Africa, went on to win.
There is a sense that winning sides grow into the tournament, so in that respect, things are far from lost. For these two teams, it’s always been about the quarter-finals.
For New Zealand, important men were missing and in the – admittedly barren – plus column, Scott Barrett was immense.
France grew into the match beautifully, opting for width only once they had found the pace of the game and felt they had the All Blacks’ measure.
It’s nothing that hasn’t been known for a long time, but this looks and feels like a mature side, supremely confident in its all-round ability. There’s no question they can take it all the way, with the only rider being the weight of expectation that will be heaped upon them.
One thing that is certain, as was just witnessed at the Women’s Football World Cup, and with Japan’s stellar performances in 2019, is that the home side succeeding on the field is a sure-fire way to bring the home nation into the event.
This French win is the best thing for the World Cup; not just because that’s a convenient thing to say, but because it will hook the mainstream media in, and get everyone around the country on the bandwagon, knowing their side is a genuine contender.
Ticketing issues meant that I missed the opening ceremony. I did manage to hear some jets and catch a glimpse of a wispy red, white and blue vapour trail, but that’s all you get when classic French disdain for logic and problem-solving kicks in.
That’s ok, once you’ve seen Rihanna do Superbowl, a few words from Bill Beaumont doesn’t quite cut the mustard.
It was what Antoine Dupont and Gregory Alldritt and their teammates had to say that really mattered.