“Comprehensively beaten” is not a phrase you often use when describing an All Black performance. But yesterday’s semi-final defeat leaves very little alternatives in terms of description. New Zealand (NZ) were abysmal on the day and deserved to lose to the performance masterminded by the genius of Eddie Jones. Since the opening salvo finished off by Manu Tuilagi shocked the fans, NZ never managed to get back into the game. It’s as if all NZ’s fears were uncorked by Tuilagi’s thunderbolt. England knew well enough that they needed to start well and start strong. That they did, bursting out of the blocks at the first whistle, pulling the puppet strings and making Barrett kick the ball out. Steve Hansen knew that England were going to kick and tried to dissuade Jones from doing so by packing his line with jumpers. Jones didn’t flinch and trusted his coaching. It paid off. England stole the line-outs that NZ were winning all tournament and the All Blacks didn’t know how to respond. This lack of response meant the game was played and won by England within the hour. Hansen threw Sam Cane on in the second half, hoping to undo the damage caused by his absence in the first half. The All Blacks backed away from the breakdown in the first few minutes and gave England the deference that they hadn’t earned at that point in the game. By the end of the game, England had certainly earned it. But the contest was conceded by NZ. Meekly. The contest was hardly the prizefight that many hoped it would be. Neither was it the champagne All Black performance that many travelling Sri Lankans hoped it would be. That was largely down to Jones’ rugby acumen and an imperious aerial performance by Maro Itoje. It was the day in which the young second-row announced himself to the world. The Southern Hemisphere suddenly realised that England are a serious team, physically, in an uncompromising fashion. Underhill and Curry were incredible with their defensive stops. The All Blacks were clueless in their response and Kieran Read’s leadership left much to be desired. It ended an unprecedented run towards a third successive title. Now that will take 12 years longer!