England vs. All Blacks: Why is winning so difficult? Analysis and Key Points

The Challenge of Facing the All Blacks: The English Perspective

Danny Care, evoking his experiences against the All Blacks, remembers the confusion after the defeats. Despite England’s memorable victory over the All Blacks in 2012, it is the feeling of bewilderment after losing that most persists in his memory. “You sit down to review the match,” says Care, “and at 75 minutes you think ‘we’re going to win’. But a few minutes later, you’ve lost by two tries and everyone is scratching their heads in the locker room, wondering why that happened.”

Beating the All Blacks is a milestone for any generation. Out of 46 encounters in 120 years, England has only won eight times. Their last victory was in the 2019 Rugby World Cup, a triumph considered their best performance since they defeated the All Blacks in 2003. That victory foreshadowed their triumph in the 2003 World Cup, in a match where they played with 13 men at one point. England’s last victory at Twickenham was in 2012, a highly valued achievement.

“It was one of the biggest victories for our generation,” Care comments. “But 13 years later, it’s incredible to say that beating the All Blacks once at home was 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 they have it in mind, they try to approach it as just another match. Jamie George, after the victory over Fiji, pointed out: “Many teams are impressed by the history and the incredible players of the All Blacks. It’s easy to fall into that. I’ve probably done it myself.”

Players who preceded George can be identified. Chris Ashton, who defeated the All Blacks in 2012, explains: “Playing against the All Blacks is a curious thing. You act in a certain way against them, I don’t know why. Until you’ve experienced it, you don’t understand why you’ve given them so much leeway when you know you should have played better.” Care adds: “I think I’ve played against them nine times, and in two or three matches you’re one point away, and you end up losing. They have so much history and tradition, there’s something special about that team and that jersey. Every time you play against them, I think, consciously or unconsciously, you’re always aware that at any moment they can ‘sting’ you.” Eddie Jones, Japan’s coach, oversaw England’s victory in the 2019 World Cup. Before the match, he used a samurai sword to cut a kiwi. “They still have an aura,” says Jones. “You hear the players talk about it. They talk about how the All Blacks do things, and how they are this and that. They are an outstanding rugby country and players, but like any other, if you put enough pressure in the right areas, you can achieve it. They want to be big, but if you can make it small, you can beat them.”

England’s first victory over the All Blacks was in 1936. Then, they won in Auckland in 1973, at Twickenham in 1983 and 1993, and in 2002 and 2003, establishing themselves as World Cup favorites. In 2012, England offered their best performance under Stuart Lancaster, beating the All Blacks 38-21. “There were rumors that the All Blacks had been ill during the week, but Manu [Tuilagi] was unstoppable that day, it was a matter of giving the ball to Manu and letting him do his thing,” recalls Care.

Ashton adds: “I was still thinking about that game, ‘there’s still time, they’ll come back, they’ll come back’. I only believed it when it was mathematically impossible with the time on the clock. You always feel that, no matter the score, they have their players, they’ll always pull something out”. Since the November 2012 victory, the 2019 triumph stands out in the history of the All Blacks’ dominance. According to Care, the players are left bewildered after being outplayed by the Kiwis. “You ask yourself how that happened,” says Care. “When are we going to take the next step and get this, this elusive victory against them.”

Analyzing what was said after each defeat since 2014, similar themes are observed. Lancaster lamented the lack of precision in the last 20 minutes in Auckland in 2014; captain Chris Robshaw said they needed to be more ruthless in Dunedin, and Lancaster was annoyed that England did not exert enough “pressure on the scoreboard” in Hamilton. “You always had to be first on the scoreboard and be ahead. If you fell behind, I felt it almost didn’t make sense to continue the match,” says Ashton.

In 2018, England was one point short at home, and thought they had won, but Sam Underhill’s try was disallowed for offside by Courtney Lawes. A year later, England achieved that resounding victory against the Kiwis in Yokohama. “We went into the match trying to get rid of this myth or aura of the All Blacks about them being invincible,” said Joe Marler after the victory. “I automatically thought they had the best players in the world from one to fifteen because that’s how you think.” England’s mood was defined by Jones wielding a samurai sword, then came the accusations of espionage and, when the All Blacks lined up for the haka, England formed an arrow shape to respond. “We tried to choose a team that was aggressive, you need aggressive players. Once you match their physique and fitness, you’re getting there. For the haka, we talked about forming a circle around them, but we settled on the ‘v’ shape. We wanted to silence the crowd and make New Zealand think that this wouldn’t be a walk in the park, and transform that emotion into ‘we are here to face you'”. Owen Farrell watched the haka with a smile, while Marler crossed the halfway line and cost England a fine. “It’s a good plan when you win, but if you don’t, you’re arrogant,” says Jones. “So, in retrospect, it was a good thing!”

After the match, the All Blacks coach, Steve Hansen, was asked by a journalist if he was worried about his team’s apparent lack of commitment. It was a question that suggested that the All Blacks’ defeat was due to them not being mentally prepared for the match, rather than England playing at an incredible level. Hansen responded by inviting the journalist to speak in private. The two met again in November 2022, with England coming back from 25-6 to a 25-25 draw, but that was Jones’ last autumn season in charge of England. Steve Borthwick succeeded him and, before his tour of New Zealand in 2024, he recalled what it was like to face the All Blacks, based on memories of his own playing career. “I’ve been on teams that have gotten on the plane without true faith,” Borthwick told reporters. “There have been some series where that has happened.”

England put them under a lot of pressure in two matches, but left with familiar regrets. Captain Jamie George said that “fine margins” caused them to lose 16-15 in Dunedin, and looked for the positives in their 24-17 defeat a week later. The All Blacks visited Twickenham in 2024 and two late missed kicks from George Ford allowed the Kiwis to win with a 24-22 victory. “That legacy plays a part, I think,” says Care. “That match where Fordy hit the post with the penalty and then missed the drop goal, if that was against any other team, would it have gone inside the post? There’s something against the All Blacks that, if you don’t finish them off, you won’t win the match.” Therefore, judging by what those who have failed in the past have said, to beat the All Blacks you need to: look beyond their history and aura, strike the first blow and seize every single opportunity. Phew. It’s not an easy task.

Ashton says: “I remember it was easy to get lost in how good the All Blacks are. But I think that slight aura that you’re inevitably going to lose has disappeared… But, on the other hand, we’re here talking about the few victories that England has had!”. New Zealand’s win record under Scott Robertson is 76%, and there is a perception that the All Blacks are fallible. But tell that to Scotland, who had a chance at immortality last weekend, only to be powerless against the Kiwi machine once it got into action. The All Blacks are going for their own Grand Slam tour, seeking a sweep of victories on Northern Hemisphere soil for the first time in 15 years. Ashton believes that England has what it takes to beat the All Blacks, but will need experienced heads to guide them. “Some of the team haven’t played against New Zealand. Coaches can give you all the information and attach emotion, but without having really experienced it, it’s quite difficult to understand what it’s like,” says Ashton. “I hope the occasion doesn’t affect them, and that they don’t leave the match saying ‘oh, you know, I should have done better there'”. Borthwick’s team must stick to their game plan to beat the All Blacks on Saturday, but also find a mindset where they can put aside the previous history, look beyond the incredible history of the All Blacks and reduce the contest to the fundamentals of rugby and small margins. Jones’ advice, recalling the 2019 victory: “Hit them first. Hit them hard. Don’t wait for them. As soon as you start thinking about the aura, you sit back and watch them. You have to be the spectacle, not part of it.” The Borthwick team has nine consecutive victories. They are on an upward trajectory, but becoming the ninth team to beat the All Blacks would allow them to join an elite group and signal true progress. “What a boost it would give them to win 10 games in a row by beating the All Blacks,” said Care. “Ask any England player ‘if you could be part of a winning team against anyone, who would you choose?’ Everyone would choose the All Blacks.”