England vs. All Blacks: Why is beating New Zealand so difficult?

The Challenge of Facing the All Blacks: An Analysis from the English Perspective

When Danny Care reminisces about his experiences against the All Blacks, he evokes a sense of bewilderment after the defeats. Although he was part of England’s memorable victory over the Kiwis in 2012, it is the confusion after a defeat that endures in his memory. Care recounts that, in the 75th minute of the game, the feeling is of imminent victory, but a few minutes later, the scoreboard shows a defeat by two tries, leaving everyone perplexed in the locker room, wondering what happened. For any generation, beating the All Blacks is a significant milestone. Out of 46 encounters over 120 years, England has only won eight times. Their most recent triumph was in the 2019 Rugby World Cup, a performance considered one of the best, even surpassing the 2003 victory in Wellington. England’s last victory at Twickenham was in 2012, a highly valued achievement.

It was one of the greatest victories for our generation, but 13 years later, it’s surprising that beating the All Blacks at home is considered the greatest achievement of that generation.

Danny Care

Steve Borthwick’s team has the opportunity to secure England’s first home victory against the All Blacks since 2012. Although it’s something they have in mind, they try to approach it as just another match. Jamie George, after the victory over Fiji, commented that many teams are astonished by the history and incredible players of the All Blacks, something he himself has experienced.

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Chris Ashton, who defeated the All Blacks in 2012, shares that playing against them is peculiar. There is a specific way of acting, difficult to understand until experienced. Care adds that, in many of the matches, defeat comes by a minimal margin, due to the history and tradition of the New Zealand team. Eddie Jones, current coach of Japan, who led England’s victory in 2019, points out that the All Blacks still retain an aura. However, he emphasizes that, if enough pressure is exerted in the right areas, it is possible to beat them. The first victory of England over the All Blacks was in 1936. Since then, they won in Auckland in 1973, at Twickenham in 1983 and 1993, and in 2002 and 2003, consolidating themselves as favorites for the World Cup. In 2012, England offered their best performance under the command of Stuart Lancaster, defeating the All Blacks 38-21. “Manu [Tuilagi] was unstoppable that day,” recalls Care.

Ashton comments that, even in that match, he felt the All Blacks could come back. Since the 2012 victory, the 2019 triumph is a milestone in the history of English rugby. Care mentions the feeling of bewilderment after each defeat, wondering when England will achieve a decisive victory. Analyzing the defeats since 2014, recurring themes are observed: lack of precision in the final minutes, the need to be more ruthless and to exert pressure on the scoreboard.

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In 2018, England was one point away from winning at home, but a try by Sam Underhill was disallowed. A year later, they achieved a significant victory in Yokohama. Joe Marler commented that, before the match, they tried to demystify the idea of the All Blacks’ invincibility. The atmosphere was created with Jones using a samurai sword, followed by accusations of espionage. England responded to the haka with an arrow-shaped formation. Jones explained that the goal was to match the aggression and physical condition of the All Blacks, and to silence the public so that New Zealand would know it wouldn’t be a walkover. Owen Farrell kept a smile, while Marler crossed the halfway line, which earned England a fine. Jones considers it was a good plan, especially because they won. All Blacks coach Steve Hansen received a question suggesting that the defeat was due to his team’s lack of mental preparation, rather than England’s excellent play.

Hansen responded by inviting the journalist to resolve the situation off the field. In November 2022, England drew 25-25, but it was Jones’ last autumn in charge of England. Steve Borthwick succeeded him and, recalling his experience against the All Blacks, mentioned that he has been on teams with little confidence. England was close in two matches, but they lamented the details. In 2024, the All Blacks visited Twickenham and two missed kicks by George Ford allowed the Kiwis to win 24-22.

That legacy plays a role, if Fordy had scored the penalty and the drop goal, would it have gone in the post? There’s something against the All Blacks that, if you don’t overcome them, you won’t win the match.

Danny Care

To beat the All Blacks, it’s necessary to overcome their history and aura, strike first, and seize every opportunity. Ashton acknowledges that it’s easy to get lost in the greatness of the All Blacks, but feels that sense of inevitable defeat has diminished. The All Blacks, with a 76% win record under Scott Robertson, are perceived as vulnerable. Borthwick must stick to his game plan, put history aside, and reduce the match to the fundamentals of rugby and the small details.

Jones’ advice, recalling the 2019 victory, is to attack first and with force. Borthwick’s team is on a run of nine consecutive victories. Beating the All Blacks would make them the ninth team to achieve this, marking real progress. Care says that any English player would choose to beat the All Blacks.