All Blacks leave Irish with familiar sinking feeling

All Blacks leave Irish with familiar sinking feelingImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Ireland have been beaten four times in succession by New ZealandByJonathan BradleyBBC Sport NI senior journalistPublished4 minutes agoCommentsAs the All Blacks extended their long unbeaten run at Eden Park to 53 matches with a 40-21 victory over Ireland, it was the continuation of a newer trend that will be of concern to Andy Farrell.Ireland's largest reverse in four years, the 19-point defeat means Farrell's side have lost their past six contests against New Zealand, France and South Africa by double-digit margins. Since the retirement of Johnny Sexton after the 2023 World Cup, Ireland have won just two such games, against a 14-man France to start the 2024 Six Nations and against the Springboks in Durban thanks to Ciaran Frawley's last-gasp drop goal later that same year. While their record against all other opposition remains stellar, and there have been notable highs such as March's thumping win over England in Twickenham, the 2025-26 campaign came to a close on Saturday morning with the feeling that the gap to the world's very best continues to widen.Nations Championship: Dominant New Zealand beat Ireland - reactionAll Blacks punish Ireland in dominant Eden Park winPublished2 hours agoIreland's three-game Nations Championship block in many ways felt like their past two years in microcosm. Against Australia and Japan across the first two rounds, they were strong enough to overcome shortcomings at the set-piece and an occasional lack of attacking fluidity to still bank a pair of bonus-point wins. When asked to make the step up to face New Zealand in their Auckland fortress, however, such struggles were punished ruthlessly. There was a direct throughline from James Ryan's spilled ball to the All Blacks' first score through Patrick Tuipulotu.Then, despite working their way back to 14-7 down thanks to a Jack Conan try eight minutes befo...