New Zealand secured a convincing 43-21 victory over Scotland in a seven-try thriller during the Nations Championship at Murrayfield. Despite a historic first-half hat-trick from Scotland hooker Ewan Ashman, the All Blacks delivered a relentless second-half performance to extend their historical unbeaten run against the Scots.
A Breathtaking First Half
Wallace Sititi opened the scoring early for New Zealand following a clever close-range line-out routine. Scotland responded immediately when Kyle Rowe engineered field position with a 50-22 kick, allowing Ashman to drive over from a line-out, with Finn Russell adding the conversion to give the hosts a brief lead.
The All Blacks quickly regained control as Ethan de Groot and Codie Taylor scored following sustained pressure, pushing the visitors ahead 17-7. New Zealand’s Peter Lakai received a yellow card for persistent offside, and Ashman capitalised with his second try. Beauden Barrett scored his first try immediately after, before Sititi was also sin-binned, enabling Ashman to complete his first-half hat-trick. Only three points separated the teams at halftime, with New Zealand leading 24-21.
All Blacks Pull Away After the Break
The second half proved to be entirely one-sided as the visitors asserted their dominance inside the Scotland 22. Josh Moorby scored following a skip pass from Jordie Barrett off a scrum, with Damian McKenzie converting to make it 29-21.
Scotland conceded further penalties under intense pressure, resulting in a yellow card for captain Sione Tuipulotu. With Scotland down to 14 men, Quinn Tupaea and McKenzie combined to set up Beauden Barrett for his second try of the match. Asafo Aumua then completed a polished set-piece move to seal the 43-21 final score, leaving Scotland searching for their first-ever win against New Zealand.
