Match Centre: Rugby World Cup Quarter-Final: Ireland 24-28 New Zealand

Ireland 24-28 New Zealand, Quarter-Final, Stade de France

New Zealand successfully managed to overcome Ireland as they sealed a thrilling 28-24 win in the Rugby World Cup quarter-final game at Stade de France on Saturday.

The result is a repeat of the 2019 Rugby World Cup where the All Blacks knocked Ireland out in the quarter-final as they now face Argentina in the semi-final in Saint-Denis on Friday. Ireland, who are yet to a win a knock-out game in a World Cup will be disappointed on the missed opportunity despite having a better head to head record over the All Blacks in the recent times.

New Zealand opened their account in the 7th minute as Tadhg Beirne was penalised for not rolling away and Richie Mo'unga kicked a three-pointer to start the proceedings. The All Blacks doubled their tally after another infringement from Andy Farrell's men and this time Jordie Barrett kicked from a long range to make it 0-6.

New Zealand stepped up the gears as Beauden Barrett sent a chip forward which he collected and went past James Lowe to allow Leicester Fainga’anuku to dive in the corner for the opening try of the game and Mo’unga made no mistake with the conversion to extend their lead to 13 points before an obstruction from Shannon Frizell allowed Johnny Sexton to kick a penalty goal in the 21st minute to reduce the gap to 10 points.

Ireland clawed their way back into the game as Bundee Aki collected a pass from James Lowe and went past Reiko Ioane and Frizzell to touchdown and Sexton improved to make it 10-13 by the half-hour mark. New Zealand looked threatening as Will Jordan looked to go over but a desperate tackle from Dan Sheehan meant the gap remained at three points.

The All Blacks once again seized the momentum as Ardie Savea dived in the corner following a well worked line out but soon they were down to 14 players temporarily as Aaron Smith was sent to the sin-bin for a dangerous tackle on Jamison Gibson-Park, who made them pay as he stretched over to score one-handed and Sexton kicked the extras as the teams completed the opening half with a 17-18 scoreline.

As New Zealand returned to full strength with no further damage and ensured they had the early advantage in the second half as Mo’unga spotted the gap in Irish defence and went past Lowe to feed Jordan, who overcame a tackle from Hugo Keenan for their third try. Jordie kicked a long-range conversion to make it 17-25.

Ireland suffered back to back setbacks as Mack Hansen had to leave the field injured and Sexton missed a rare penalty chance at the end of the third quarter. Nevertheless, the game took a turn once again and it was New Zealand's indiscipline that costed them as Codie Taylor was sent to sin-bin for bringing down a maul down with referee Wayne Barnes also awarding Ireland a penalty try making it a one-point game.

Jordie missed a penalty chance in the 67th minute but made amends with another three-pointer a minute later after Conor Murray was penalised for an obstruction as the game entered the final 10 minutes with New Zealand holding on to a slender 24-28 lead. With the clock ticking, a desperate Ireland were looking for a decisive blow but the All Blacks held their defence firm handing Andy Farrell's men another heartbreak.

Match Reactions:

New Zealand number eight Ardie Savea expressed delight over his team's performance.

"There was a lot riding on this week," he said. "It was one of those test matches that was a battle. To go out there and play against a world-class Irish squad, we gave the fans what they wanted.

"This Irish team have set the standard this whole year. I just want to send love to them. I am just so proud of my boys."

Team line up:

Ireland XV: Hugo Keenan; Mack Hansen, Garry Ringrose, Bundee Aki, James Lowe; Johnny Sexton (captain), Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong; Tadhg Beirne, Iain Henderson; Peter O’Mahony, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris

Reserves: Ronan Kelleher, Dave Kilcoyne, Finlay Bealham, Joe McCarthy, Jack Conan, Conor Murray, Jack Crowley, Jimmy O’Brien

New Zealand XV: Beauden Barrett; Will Jordan, Rieko Ioane, Jordie Barrett, Leicester Fainga’anuku; Richie Mo’unga, Aaron Smith; Ethan de Groot, Codie Taylor, Tyrel Lomax; Brodie Retallick, Scott Barrett; Shannon Frizell, Sam Cane (captain), Ardie Savea

Reserves: Dane Coles, Tamaiti Williams, Fletcher Newell, Samuel Whitelock, Dalton Papali’i, Finlay Christie, Damian McKenzie, Anton Lienert-Brown