Rugby World Cup
New Zealand rip up record book with emphatic France win
ESPN Staff
October 18, 2015
New Zealand 62-13 France (video available in Australia only)

New Zealand broke records left, right and centre as they humbled France in the Rugby World Cup quarterfinal at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday, the All Blacks proving beyond doubt with their 62-13 execution that they are well on track in their title defence despite previous underwhelming performances against Argentina, Namibia, Georgia and Tonga in pool play.

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The 62 points New Zealand scored is the most posted by any team against Les Bleus, replacing their June 2007 61-10 victory in Wellington. France, of course, gained revenge for that humiliation when the teams next played each other in the famed 2007 Rugby World Cup quarterfinal in Cardiff - the result that New Zealand have now avenged fully. No team had ever scored 62 points in a Rugby World Cup knockout match, with the 1987 champion New Zealand team holding the previous mark with their 49-6 semifinal victory against Wales.

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The nine tries scored by the All Blacks saw them top 300 tries in Rugby World Cups matching; they moved to 306 by the time the final siren sounded. Australia are second on the list of Rugby World Cup tryscorers - with 198.

The victory means the All Blacks are the first team to make qualify for seven Rugby World Cup semifinals.

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Ma'a Nonu and Conrad Smith improved to 13 their record of most consecutive Rugby World Cup wins without tasting defeat. The victory - New Zealand's 12th consecutive Rugby World Cup win - sees the All Blacks equal Australia's mark. The Wallabies were undefeated from 1999 until they lost the 2003 final to England.

Julian Savea scored three tries to take to eight his tally at Rugby World Cup 2015, equalling the recerd of Jonah Lomu (1999) and Bryan Habana (2007) for tries at an individual tournament. He also became only the third player to post a hat-trick of tries in a Rugby World Cup finals match, after South Africa's Chester Williams and fellow New Zealander Jonah Lomu. His hat-trick also see him leap-from Lomu into fifth place on the list of All Blacks try scorers; Savea now has 38 tries in 39 tests, while Lomu scored 37 tries in took 63 Tests.

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