England Stop All Blacks’ Slam

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At Twickenham Stadium in London, England defeated New Zealand 33–19, ending the All Blacks’ hopes of winning a Grand Slam.

Despite leading 12–0 early in the match, New Zealand couldn’t hold off England’s strong comeback, with the home team scoring 25 points in a row.

This loss was New Zealand’s first at Twickenham since 2012 and their first defeat by England since the 2019 World Cup. It was a major blow for the All Blacks, who aimed to win all four matches of their European tour – a feat they haven’t achieved since 2010.

New Zealand started well, scoring early tries through Leicester Fainga’anuku and Codie Taylor. They also stole three English lineouts and gave away fewer penalties in the first half. But England found their rhythm and began to dominate.

Ollie Lawrence scored first for England, followed by two dropped goals from George Ford, which helped close the gap by halftime. After the break, things got worse for the All Blacks. Halfback Cam Roigard left with an injury, and Codie Taylor received a yellow card.

England took full advantage, with Sam Underhill and Fraser Dingwall scoring tries. Although Will Jordan scored for New Zealand later on, England kept control, and Tom Roebuck’s final try sealed the match.

The All Blacks have one match left this year, against Wales in Cardiff.

How did this story make you feel?

SMART Prep | Quick Question 210661

On Saturday morning, a group of Year 8 students met at a beach near Tauranga for a community clean-up. They brought gloves, sacks, and water bottles. At first, the sand looked almost clean, but as the group moved closer to the rocks, they found bottles, food wrappers, and fishing line tangled in the seaweed. One student noticed that small pieces of plastic were hardest to collect because they blended in with the shells. By midday, the students had filled eight large bags. Their teacher said the real success was not only the rubbish they removed, but also the way the students helped protect the wildlife that lives along the shore.

Which sentence best summarises the main idea of the passage?

  

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