New Zealands All Blacks overpower Lions 30-15 in curtain-raiser

On a wet night at Auckland's Eden Park, New Zealand's accurate, all-action brand of rugby proved too much for the Lions -- who found themselves on the wrong end of a 30-15 defeat.

Made up of the best players from Britain and Ireland, the Lions play a best-of-three series in the Southern Hemisphere once every four years.

And in the first match of the 2017 series, Warren Gatland's team was overpowered by the All Blacks and the exciting talent of Rieko Ioane.



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READ: What it means to play against the All Blacks

The comprehensive result means New Zealand protected an unbeaten run at this venue which stretches back to 1994 -- when Bill Clinton was sat in the Oval Office and Forest Gump was showing in movie theaters.

Two second-half tries from winger Ioane and one in the first period from hooker Codie Taylor helped rugby's No. 1 ranked side to victory, extending their run of wins on home soil to 47.

A spirited resistance from the visitors saw them produce some promising moments, including a sparkling length-of-the-field try finished by flanker Sean O'Brien.

READ: Lions suffer first defeat of tour to Blues

But ultimately the Lions had few answers to the speed, power and precision of the All Black attacks.

Despite only leading 13-8 at halftime, New Zealand seized control of proceedings in the second period.

Wave after wave of attack, which saw Beauden Barrett -- rated as the world's best player and faultless from the kicking tee on this occasion -- add a penalty to Ioane's two tries, increasing the New Zealand lead to 22 points.

A try from Rhys Webb on the final whistle was only a consolation for the Lions, who have a midweek game against provincial side the Hurricanes before the second test takes place in Wellington next weekend.

READ: All you need to know about the Lions tour

New Zealand coach Steve Hansen was full of praise for their opponents, in particular O'Brien's score following a breathtaking Lions attack.

'The Lions played magnificently and that first try was probably one of the best I've ever seen,' Hansen told reporters.

All Blacks captain Kieran Read, recently recovered from a broken thumb, led his team magnificently.

He praised his teammate's ability to capitalize on opportunities when they arose.

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'Our defense after halftime maybe won us the game,' said Read. 'We had our opportunity and we took it.

'I thought it was hell of a Test match, we certainly got tested in that first half especially and just after half time. It was two pretty skillful teams working very hard for each other.'

Visit cnn.com/rugby for more news and videos A spirited resistance from the visitors saw them produce some promising moments, including a sparkling length-of-the-field try finished by flanker Sean O'Brien. Visit cnn.com/rugby for more news and videos The comprehensive result means New Zealand protected an unbeaten run at this venue which stretches back to 1994 -- when Bill Clinton was sat in the Oval Office and Forest Gump was showing in movie theaters. Made up of the best players from Britain and Ireland, the Lions play a best-of-three series in the Southern Hemisphere once every four years. READ: All you need to know about the Lions tour A spirited resistance from the visitors saw them produce some promising moments, including a sparkling length-of-the-field try finished by flanker Sean O'Brien. Two second-half tries from winger Ioane and one in the first period from hooker Codie Taylor helped rugby's No. 1 ranked side to victory, extending their run of wins on home soil to 47. New Zealand coach Steve Hansen was full of praise for their opponents, in particular O'Brien's score following a breathtaking Lions attack. 'Our defense after halftime maybe won us the game,' said Read. 'We had our opportunity and we took it. 'The Lions played magnificently and that first try was probably one of the best I've ever seen,' Hansen told reporters. And in the first match of the 2017 series, Warren Gatland's team was overpowered by the All Blacks and the exciting talent of Rieko Ioane. 'The Lions played magnificently and that first try was probably one of the best I've ever seen,' Hansen told reporters. Despite only leading 13-8 at halftime, New Zealand seized control of proceedings in the second period. The comprehensive result means New Zealand protected an unbeaten run at this venue which stretches back to 1994 -- when Bill Clinton was sat in the Oval Office and Forest Gump was showing in movie theaters. Two second-half tries from winger Ioane and one in the first period from hooker Codie Taylor helped rugby's No. 1 ranked side to victory, extending their run of wins on home soil to 47. And in the first match of the 2017 series, Warren Gatland's team was overpowered by the All Blacks and the exciting talent of Rieko Ioane.

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