Following a 43-21 victory for the All Blacks over the Wallabies at Accor Stadium in Sydney on Saturday, here are our winners and losers from the Bledisloe Cup clash.
Winners
Peter Lakai
There haven’t been too many better back-row displays than this in 2026, even from Ardie Savea himself. Lakai was absolutely everywhere for New Zealand and simply exceptional on both sides of the ball as the visitors dominated the Wallabies.
Dave Rennie has tended to prefer players who operate closer to the ruck at openside but, on the evidence of the past two weeks, it will be tough to shift him from the number seven jersey, especially when he operated so well with Wallace Sititi.
Wallace Sititi
Speaking of the number eight, he enjoyed a fine evening too. Sititi was only on the field for just over 50 minutes but he carried hard and displayed his vast skill set to give Rennie food for thought ahead of the Nations Championship. Should their openside injury crisis ease, the head coach might be tempted to move Lakai to the base of the scrum, but those two are working impressively together.
Damian McKenzie
Another incredible display from the playmaker at fly-half. Following his superb showing in Auckland, McKenzie was utterly spellbinding at Accor Stadium, especially in the first half. The way he drifted onto the ball caused so many problems for the Australian defence and created plenty of chances for the All Blacks.
He is surely here to stay in the 10 jersey, even if Richie Mo’unga does return from injury. The 31-year-old has thrived since moving from full-back and he now has an opportunity to cement his place in the pivot position ahead of Rugby World Cup year.
Fabian Holland
Many were surprised that the young lock was dropped for the final Springboks Test and was then absent for the Bledisloe Cup opener. Holland returned to the XV in Sydney having, according to Rennie, made a ‘shift’ to his game, and whatever that was, it paid dividends.
The second-row was quite simply dominant in all facets of the game, whether it was winning ball on their own lineout or his work around the field. There were also some stunning touches in the loose which often lit the fuse for the New Zealand attack.
Dave Rennie
His side were competitive in every Springboks Test but inevitably criticism will follow when the All Blacks lose games. Rennie therefore needed a couple of big performances and he got them as they dominated the Wallabies in both Bledisloe Cup matches.
New Zealand still need to do it consistently and that will be tested on the northern hemisphere tour where they will face a team in England who will look to put their pack and aerial game under pressure. Scotland could also be tough, despite the All Blacks’ imperious record at Murrayfield, but at the moment they are trending in the right direction under the new boss.
Mike Blair
The Scottish attack guru should also be given plenty of credit for their improvement behind the scrum this season. New Zealand were quite frankly dull to watch in 2024 and 2025, something you can’t often say, but they have reverted to their free-flowing style since Rennie’s and Blair’s arrival.
Beauden Barrett
Has benefited from the injuries at fly-half, which have ultimately opened up a spot at full-back, but the legendary playmaker has excelled since the half-time in last week’s contest. Barrett was quiet in the opening period at Eden Park, but he came to the fore after the break and took that momentum into Saturday’s contest in Sydney.
The 35-year-old was at his creative best and also showed that he has not lost too much gas by staying clear after intercepting Max Jorgensen’s pass. Equally, on defence, Barrett shone and forced the ball out of Declan Meredith’s hands after Cam Roigard had initially done superbly to hold the Aussie fly-half up. There’s plenty of life left in him yet.
Josh Moorby
Didn’t have the greatest South Africa tour and the battle for the left wing spot remained tight between him and Leroy Carter, while Rieko Ioane would not have been too far off, but this display may well keep Moorby in the jersey.
It wasn’t necessarily a spectacular showing but he was excellent under the high ball – a weakness against the Springboks – and he managed to get across the whitewash twice, while he made 65 metres with ball in hand.
Filipo Daugunu
Jorgensen was impressive and was the best of the starters but he’s already established himself in the Wallabies XV. Daugunu, by contrast, has been in and out of the squad, and has not really been getting a lot of minutes, but this display off the bench may just get him a bit more game time. It will be an important Nations Championship for the 31-year-old.
Losers
Les Kiss
After taking over from Joe Schmidt, the new Wallabies head coach enjoyed a fine start by going on a five-match unbeaten run, which included a stunning success over the back-to-back world champions Springboks.
However, the honeymoon period is very much over after these disappointing defeats to their trans-Tasman rivals. It was not just the results but the manner of them with Australia utterly demolished in both matches. The Wallabies lacked physicality for the majority of the 160 minutes as the All Blacks bullied them in contact.
Quinn Tupaea
Unfortunately, his game lasted just a minute after suffering a head injury, with Ioane coming on to replace him. With the Nations Championship three weeks away Tupaea should make it, providing there are no lasting symptoms from his hit, but it was a shame we did not get to see his showcase his talent in Sydney after a magnificent season so far.
Timoci Tavatavanawai
The centre was certainly not poor by any means but, after being handed an invaluable opportunity after Jordie Barrett’s late withdrawal, Tavatavanawai didn’t quite make the most of it. He was physical, abrasive and had the odd spectacular moment, but it was nowhere near the class of Barrett.
There wasn’t the breakdown prowess we have seen in Super Rugby Pacific, nor did he continually send Wallabies defenders flying when carrying the ball. Although he ended in credit overall, it wasn’t the dominant display he needed.
Ryan Lonergan
Received plenty of praise for his display against South Africa, but the scrum-half has faltered in both games against New Zealand. Lonergan of course hasn’t been helped by the platform set, which has been poor, but the playmaker has equally not helped matters by kicking poorly and providing slow service.
Joseph Suaalii
It says a lot that his best game in the 15-player code was his first one with the rugby league convert being a disappointment since then. Suaalii has tremendous athleticism but he doesn’t use it nearly well enough in union. Although Australia aren’t quite playing to his strengths either, the 23-year-old’s understanding of the sport has not really developed and he is making poor decisions in both attack and defence.
Tupou Vaa’i
After a sparkling second 40 minutes at Eden Park, Vaa’i got another runout at blindside, but he wasn’t quite as effective this time around. Like every starting All Black, he played his part in what was a stunning first-half performance, but it was certainly not a standout effort. It will be fascinating to see how he goes in the northern leg of the Nations Championship as they are still searching for that long-term number six.
Aidan Ross and Allan Alaalatoa
It was a big game for Ross, who was playing against his former country – he earned one All Blacks cap in 2022 – but it was telling that he was hooked at the interval. The scrum wasn’t really a factor in the match but neither props really managed to get into the contest.