It's rugby's ultimate David versus Goliath battle as the All Blacks head Stateside to take on a United states team that recently lost a World Cup qualifying fixture to Uruguay.
United States v New Zealand
Sunday 24 October
FedEx Field
02:30
To Win Match
United States 33/1
Draw 50/1
New Zealand N/A
Handicap
United States (+68.5) 9/10
New Zealand (-68.5) 9/10
It’s far from the most glamorous fixture the All Blacks have played this year but Ian Foster will still be expecting a solid performance from his side and a big response after they lost their final Rugby Championship fixture to the South Africans last month.
The All Blacks cruised to big wins over Australia and Argentina but then found stiff opposition in the form of the Springboks who they beat 19-17 in the first clash and then lost to 31-29 in the second.
While the aforementioned defeat will be plenty of motivation for the New Zealanders, the sad passing of Maori All Black Sean Wainui this past week will further fuel the fire.
Whilst New Zealand have only lost a solitary test this year, this weekend’s hosts have already suffered a number of defeats going down to England, Ireland, Canada and Uruguay. Their only two victories came in reverse fixtures with fellow minnows Canada and Uruguay.
While the United States are likely to offer little resistance here, we can still expect a very strong Kiwi side to take to the field this weekend. It has been confirmed that Sam Whitelock will skipper the side while the returning Sam Kane is likely to get some game time as well. We could also see a debut for promising young lock Josh Lord.
Verdict: New Zealand (-68.5) 9/10
They have conquered some big handicaps already this year, and I can see the All Blacks repeating the trick again. I would not be at all surprised to see the Kiwis score 100+ points against a States outfit that has struggled this year.
