All Blacks ‘far from perfect’: World media reacts to victory over Italy

How the world’s media reacted to the All Blacks’ 47-17 victory over Italy at Wellington’s Hnry Stadium.

Italy ‘lost their way’ in second half

Valentin Lachaux, L’Equipe

Despite a sluggish first half, New Zealand secured a second victory in the Nations Championship by defeating an Italian team that lost its way in the second half (47-17) on Saturday morning.

A week after beating France by just two points in their opening Nations Championship match at their brand-new Christchurch stadium, New Zealand secured a second consecutive victory this Saturday, defeating Italy 47-17 in Wellington.

It was a heavy defeat for Gonzalo Quesada’s men, who lost their way in the second half.

From the outset, Toulouse’s new signing Tommaso Menoncello caught the All Blacks cold, scoring the first try of the match in the second minute. The home side responded immediately, leveling the score thanks to Sam Darry (8th minute, 7-7).

But after that, things became more complicated. Despite their possession, the New Zealanders struggled to convert their opportunities against a very solid Italian defense, particularly on their try line. However, they were ahead at halftime thanks to a try by Will Jordan (40th minute, 14-10).

All Blacks ‘far from perfect’

Henry Lee, RugbyPass

The second round of the inaugural Nations Championship competition began at Hnry Stadium in Wellington on Saturday afternoon, where Dave Rennie’s All Blacks bounced back from a slow start to surge past Italy, 47-17.

Rennie’s side were far from perfect, and the Italian’s forced the All Blacks to work for their Nations Championship victory, but it’s the second-straight victory to kickstart a huge year in 2026.

The All Blacks now top the Nations Championship ladder after their two victories, prior to the rest of the round two fixtures.

It was a superb first half from Gonzalo Quesada’s men in Wellington, and they deserve all the credit, suffocating the All Blacks and threatening with ball in hand.

Benneton’s Tommaso Menoncello was a first-half standout, scoring the opening try and providing the visitors with an array of inspirational moments.

The second half, though, was a completely different ball game. The All Blacks added five tries in the second half, including Will Jordan surpassing Doug Howlett’s long-standing record of 49 tries for the All Blacks.

Jordan ‘likely to accelerate’

Harry Latham-Coyle, The Independent

Will Jordan moved past Doug Howlett to become the All Blacks’ all-time leading try scorer with a hat-trick against Italy.

Jordan scored Test tries No 48, 49 and 50 in just his 56th Test to eclipse the long-standing tally of former full-back Howlett as New Zealand pulled away in Wellington.

The 28-year-old blazed into the right corner to complete his hat-trick and hit a half-century overall, with the back three star showing few signs of slowing down.

The New Zealand try record had been a curious one, with a series of All Blacks including Joe Rokocoko and Julian Savea (both scoring 46 times) threatening to break it over the last 20 years but falling short. Beauden Barrett currently has 45 tries.

The versatile Jordan – a regular on the wing and wearing No 15 since his debut – has long been touted as the man to break it, though, since bursting into senior rugby with Tasman and the Crusaders. The outside back gave a nod to the Mako with a shark-fin celebration after the record score.

Jordan is likely to accelerate further up the all-time Test try-scoring charts, too. Japan’s Daisuke Ohata holds the record with 69 tries, although some of his scores were in games with disputed Test status. South Africa’s Bryan Habana registered 67 times in 124 caps for the Springboks.

All Blacks maintain ‘flawless record’

Leezil Hendricks, Rugby365

The All Blacks maintained their flawless record against Italy with a commanding 47-17 victory in their Nations Championship Round Two clash in Wellington on Saturday.

Despite a sluggish start, Dave Rennie’s men produced a clinical second-half display to pull away from the visitors, eventually outscoring Italy by seven tries to two.

Will Jordan etched his name into the record books, becoming the All Blacks’ all-time leading try-scorer after bagging a hat-trick to take his remarkable tally to 50 tries.

For Italy, it was a brave first half display, but their second half proved to be a challenge while the task was not made easier in the 51st minute when Italy lock Niccolò Cannone was shown a red card, handing the All Blacks a numerical advantage for the remainder of the contest.

The result means that New Zealand make it two wins from two in the inaugural 12-nation competition, while Italy have yet to secure a victory.

All Blacks ‘found another gear’

Steven Smith, Ruck.co.uk

New Zealand pulled away in the second half to beat Italy 47-17 in Wellington, but the scoreline failed to reflect a contest that was fiercely competitive for long periods.

Italy stunned the home crowd by taking an early lead through Malik Faissal and matched the All Blacks physically throughout the first half. However, Sam Darry and Will Jordan crossed before the break to give New Zealand a narrow advantage.

The hosts found another gear after halftime as Cam Roigard, Ethan de Groot and Jordan’s second and third tries blew the game open. Jordan’s hat-trick was a historic one, taking him to 50 Test tries and making him the All Blacks’ outright leading try scorer.

Will Jordan of the All Blacks celebrates a try, 2026 Nations Championship, New Zealand All Black v Italy, Hnry Stadium, Wellington. Saturday 11 July, 2026 © Mandatory credit: Kerry Marshall / www.photosport.nz Will Jordan scored three tries against Italy. Photo / Photosport

Italy’s hopes faded further when Niccolò Cannone was sent off after his yellow card was upgraded to a red for headbutting Roigard. Leonardo Marin grabbed a late consolation, but Tupou Vaa’i’s try after the final siren sealed an emphatic All Blacks victory.

‘Work in progress’

Liam Napier, NZ Herald

The Matariki stars briefly aligned as Will Jordan broke the try scoring record and the All Blacks cruised to a comfortable victory in the capital.

This time, there was no Wellington curse for the All Blacks as they maintained their 18-game unbeaten run against Italy to notch their second straight win under Dave Rennie.

While the All Blacks shook off their first-half struggles to strike a third-quarter groove, suggesting this was a statement result would be inflammatory given Italy arrived after successive losses to Japan and Wales – and missing several first-choice players.

Pedantic, at times confusing, officiating didn’t help the stop-start spectacle but the second week into Rennie’s era, growing pains remain widely evident for the All Blacks.

One quality third-quarter blitz won’t mask other flaws, such as failing to score a point from the 54th minute until Tupou Vaa’i crashed over in added time, and a frustrating first half.

At this stage, cohesion and executing clinical skills remain a work in progress.