The All Blacks led 21-0 after 15 minutes but faltered badly in the second half, only just holding on with 13 men at one point to beat Australia 31-28 in the first Bledisloe Cup test.

On a sun-drenched Sydney afternoon, the All Blacks fired and almost fatally fizzed to deliver another erratic performance that anxiously locked away the Bledisloe Cup. Securing the coveted Bledisloe for a 22nd straight year ensures the All Blacks trophy cabinet won’t be bare after losing the Freedom Cup and Rugby Championship following successive losses in South Africa.

The Aussies were mounting pressure and forced the All Blacks down to 13 when Anton Lienert-Brown and Caleb Clarke went to the bin for repeated infringements and a deliberate knock on. The Wallabies were full of running but yet to deliver the killer blow as the All Blacks survived multiple late attacks on their line.

The All Blacks lost starting fullback Beauden Barrett to illness before kickoff but they came out firing in Sydney with 28 first half points.

A nice dash late in the first half hinted at a Wallabies spark after he’d spent much of the first 40 scrambling back to tidy up or stand behind his own sticks. Was vibrant in a surge that gave chance of a remarkable turnaround and bagged an important try.

New Zealand scored four tries in the first 25 minutes and held off a second-half Australia fightback with 13 men to beat the Wallabies 31-28 in a Rugby Championship thriller.

The Bledisloe Cup will remain in New Zealand for a 23rd straight year after the All Blacks beat the Wallabies 31-28 in a Rugby Championship thriller in Sydney.

The All Blacks retained the Bledisloe Cup despite a nervous last 20 minutes in their 31-28 win over the Wallabies in Sydney on Saturday.