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Captain Dan Sheehan accepted ireland Failed to perform after a crushing 26-13 defeat new zealand in Chicago.
Andy Farrell’s team overcome controversial early dismissal early on Tadhg Byrne Tadhg Furlong scored and Jack Crowley led through eight points for a high tackle on Beauden Barrett.
But, it has been almost nine years since Ireland’s first historic win in this tournament all black Thanks to the efforts, revenge was taken at Soldier Field ardi seviaChildren Williams, Wallace Stitty and Cam Roigaard.
“It’s a bitter pill to swallow,” Sheehan told TNT Sports.
“To be honest, I don’t think we ever really made any headway. We saw little pieces of what we were looking for but we couldn’t really put the whole picture together.”
Lock Byrne was sin-binned in the third minute for a direct challenge on All Blacks fly-half Barrett – who missed three of his four conversion attempts – before the punishment was upgraded to a red card on review.
Ireland led 10–7 at half-time and increased that lead to three points early in the second period through Crawley’s second successful penalty of the game.
However, New Zealand took over in the final quarter in a contest that was more disappointing than spectacular, ruining Farrell’s return as Ireland head coach after the British and Irish Lions sabbatical.
Ireland host Japan next weekend before Dublin fixtures against Australia and world champions South Africa.
“I thought we were about 80 percent done in that half-time period,” Sheehan said.
“We looked to do something extra in the second half. There were times we did but there were a lot of mistakes with breakdowns and discipline, so there’s a lot to work on.
“We thought we were in a good position, but today things did not go our way and we have to take an honest review.
“Hopefully we can come back next week and turn it around.”
Ireland vs New Zealand has developed into a genuine rivalry in recent years, with each side starting the day with five wins in each of the last 10 encounters, including the previous clash in the United States.
All Blacks back-rower Savea, who came off the bench in his country’s 40-29 defeat in 2016, said: “It was nine years ago, but it’s good to come here and make amends. We’ll enjoy tonight and celebrate the win.”
Asked about team talks after a disappointing first half, he said: “We couldn’t take things forward and credit to the Irish team for putting pressure on us.
“But once we started getting our flow things started going our way. We’ll look at the first part, but overall we’re happy.”