Defending champion New Zealand trounces Canada 63-0 at Rugby World Cup
Canadian men missed 46 tackles in humid conditions at Tokyo
New Zealand gave Canada a 63-0 thrashing that was expected in the Rugby World Cup.
The gulf in class between the defending champion All Blacks and the last team to qualify for the tournament was always going to be measured by a high score, and the New Zealanders poured eight tries and a penalty try through a defence that missed 46 tackles.
After a first half that turned messy in humid conditions under the Oita Dome, New Zealand sent on replacement scrumhalf Brad Weber and midfielder Ryan Crotty to tidy up the attack, and they turned it on, being ruthlessly entertaining.
One of them went to lock Scott Barrett, who joined his brothers Beauden and Jordie as try-scorers, supplementing their milestone as the second trio of brothers to play in the Rugby World Cup after the Vunipola brothers of Tonga in 1995.
There was no more scoring through the last quarter, but only because the pace the All Blacks were playing at was too quick for even themselves, and passes were knocked on or forward. Dominating almost every category and making most of the running, the All Blacks made 15 handling errors. They had more than 60 per cent of the ball, and 70 per cent of the turf.
On Friday, Canada takes on two-time winner South Africa.
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