MICHAEL HOOPER REMAINS confident Australia can turn things around even in the wake of a second successive convincing defeat at the hands of New Zealand in the Rugby Championship.
Beauden Barrett turned in a sparkling performance at Eden Park on Saturday, becoming the first All Black to score four tries against the Wallabies, contributing 30 points in total as the defending champions ran out 40-12 victors to retain the Bledisloe Cup.
Joe Moody and Liam Squire also crossed the whitewash for the home side, who have not lost at the Auckland venue in 42 Tests — a run that dates back to July 1994.
The Wallabies, by comparison, are left licking their wounds on the back of last weekend’s 38-13 defeat in Sydney, while the pressure continues to mount on head coach Michael Cheika.
“I’ve got full belief in our team, I’ve got full belief in our players,” said a defiant Hooper.
“Something is not going right at the moment in certain parts of our game that we’ve got to cut out.
“But I’m a big believer in this team and I’ve got full confidence that we can turn the corner.”
Meanwhile, Kieran Read said retaining the Bledisloe Cup was no walk in the park for New Zealand despite the scoreline.
Barrett became the first New Zealand player to score four tries against the Wallabies in a 40-12 rout, ensuring the world champions lifted the famous trophy for a 16th consecutive year.
All Blacks captain Read savoured yet another triumph for Steve Hansen’s side, but said their success did not come easily.
“We respect this cup, we respect what the Wallabies bring every week when you play against them,” he said in the post-match presentation.
“It’s great to be back in front of our fans and lift it [the Bledisloe Cup] again for another year. It doesn’t just come easily for us, we have to work bloody hard.
“We can’t turn up and expect to play, we’ve got a full squad here and we really pay respect to all of the guys in the 23.
“They make us work each day when we turn up to work, those boys are really part of this team and the management as well.”
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