All Blacks - 24 France - 19
FULL TIME - The All Blacks will not be happy with the match as France took them all the way to the 80th minute. Their defence held well and they held their composure when it counted. But they were largely found out by a French team on the up with their offloading running the All Blacks ragged. Click above for video highlights.
80 min - Aaron Smith has no time for dillydalling and he pumps the ball into the stadium. The crowd breaks out into boos and the game is done.
79 min - Smart rugby by the All Blacks as they go side to side, taking the ball into contact, the clock is ticking
78 min - France are forced to clear the ball and give it back to the All Blacks who have an attacking lineout on the 22 metre line
77 min - Naholo wins the kick-off and Barrett drills the ball into the French 22. Smart rugby by the All Blacks
76 min - Kick is good and this is going down to the wire
75 min - Very well handled by referee Barnes because another ref could have looked at a clear out by Savea which sparked a bit of handbags. France take the penalty strangely
75 min - The All Blacks force the French wide and over the touch line but a scrappy ball to Smith means the All Blacks concede a penalty on their own 10 metre line
73 min - Ardie Savea is penalised for going off his feet at a breakdown five metres out and France clears through their diminutive halfback
71 min - The French aren't going away and they're making sure this goes down to the very last minute. Their scrum has tested the All Blacks but one could argue they're screwing the scrum intentionally
71 min - France are all over the break down and Barnes finally blows it up (only 71 minutes in). The All Blacks call for an attacking scrum on the 22 metre line
68 min - The All Blacks win another French lineout and France can't handle a wipers kick from Aaron Cruden. The All Blacks have a scrum on the French 22 metre line
67 min - France win a maul penalty on their own 22 and have an attacking lineout on the half way line
66 min - Reiko Ioane is bundled out into touch inside the French 22 metre. Both teams looking for acreage with their kicks but neither team finding it
62 min - TRY FRANCE - A huge scrum by France earns them a penalty and their replacement halfback takes a quick tap, passes it behind the back to Louis Picamoles who dives over. Game well and truly on
60 min - Heroic defence by the All Blacks as France scoop on a loose ball and almost go over in the right hand corner before losing it a metre from the line
57 min - TRY ALL BLACKS - Faumuina burrows over after looking like he fumbled it. Barnes wants none of the French queries and points skyward and blows hard
56 min - France are pinged just inside their 22 for playing the ball on the ground and the All Blacks go for the corner
55 min - France look to go wide but some good drifting defence from Ioane shadows them to the touch line. All Black lineout 40 metres out from the French line. Ardie Savea and Aaron Cruden warming up.
53 min - The All Blacks win a penalty deep inside their own 22 and Barrett will relieve. The French don't look like dropping away and they're defending with some real vigour
51 min - Anton Lienert Brown gives a penalty away at the breakdown after the kick off and the French drive the ball into All Black territory for another attack
50 min - All Blacks continue to miss tackles but the French can't yet make them pay. Barnes awards a penalty to France about 20 metres out from the All Black line and they nail another penalty goal
48 min - The All Blacks are missing a lot of tackles but their work at the breakdown is continuing to hurt the French. Charlie Faumuina comes on up front for the visitors
47 min - All Blacks win another French lineout but a chip from Barrett gives the ball away. France have the ball on their own 10 metre line
45 min - France's set piece is stalling but earn a lineout just in All Black territory. Meanwhile Ryan Crotty comes off with what looks like a head injury and Reiko Ioane comes on.
44 min - Could have been a 14 point turn around there with France having the overlap. But no Barrett does it again.
43 min - TRY ALL BLACKS - Wow that came out of nowhere, France were 5 metres out hot onto attack and Beauden Barrett takes an intercept and sprints 95 metres for a try
42 min - Both sides guilty of giving away ball in the collision but France are able to hold onto it when it counts and they're hot on attack 5 metres out.
Second half underway...
HALF TIME - France have had all the stats and all the play but they still find themselves behind. The All Blacks have defended valiantly but their lack of protection of the ball at breakdown time and their defence patterns will be a worry for the coaching side after being outflanked a number of times during the half.
40 min - Good line speed from the All Blacks and France go backward back over their own half way line in a dozen phases. A box kick from Machenaud culminates in a ruck penalty to France. You could have argued Dagg was taken in the air but Barnes saw it differently. France line up for another shot at the sticks.
38 min - France win a penalty, quick tap it and go wide two phases but go nowhere and Barnes rewards them a penalty. La Marseillaise starts in the crowd. France take a scrum
34 min - The All Blacks using their chip kick to get in behind the defence and France kick it back. All Blacks with ball in hand 30 metres out from the France line but lose it forward. Both teams muscling up in defence
31 min - Some more big defence from the All Blacks and they're given a relieving penalty. The French look dangerous on every attacking phase
30 min - French Captain Guilhem Guirado collides with an All Black player on his chase through to charge down the kick. Hollywood stuff from the hooker and the French crowd are baying for blood. However Barnes sees nothing wrong with it and its a lineout to France about 35 metres out.
29 min - France unlucky not to score, they go wide with numbers and as their winger Virimi Vakatawa goes to offload, the connecting player on the inside drops the ball. All he had to do was catch and drive
27 min - Some good solid d from France inside their own 22 and an All Black gets a hand to their clearing kick. France lineout on their own 22 metre line
26 min - Read brilliantly wins the kick off back and the All Blacks will get some ball in the French 22.
25 min - Machenaud knocks the kick over and the hosts are on the board
24 min - Beauden Barrett has made some key try-saving tackles in the past few minutes. As tough as nails. France win a penalty though at the breakdown and after going for a few lineouts deep in All Black territory, they go for the sticks
23 min - France are hot on attack after some great offloads but lose the ball just inches short of the All Black line. Dagg called on again to make a thumping clearing kick just into France's half, what a clearance and what brilliant tough defence by the All Blacks
21 min - Scrappy from the French to lose the ball but Barrett kicks it out on the full outside his own 22 and France has a lineout just on the All Blacks side of half way.
19 min - Perenara very smartly plays the territory game from the kick-off but they concede a penalty at lineout time. France with the ball 40 metres out from the All Blacks line
18 min - Kick goes over by Barrett and for all of France's domination, they find themselves 10 points down.
17 min - All Blacks win a penalty just outside the French 22 metre line and Barrett lines up for the kick, almost right in front.
14 min - French halfback Maxime Machenaud almost gets the ball to his flanker but he spills it. All Blacks scrum 15 metres out but if anything's for sure at this stage, it's that the hosts have brought their offload game. All Blacks win a penalty from the ensuing scrum.
12 min - French awarded a penalty for obstruction by the All Blacks, they have a lineout 22 metres out.
11 min - The French are on attack on the All Blacks 10 metre line. They brought their offload game and are well and truly using it. Fofana huge for the hosts early on.
10 min - A thrill a minute from the French. The crowd is stunned by the converted try but they regather from the kick-off and put together 4 offloads to send them down their left hand side again
7 min - TRY ALL BLACKS - wow wow wow. Wipers kick from Barrett, taken by Savea on the left touch line who then offloads to Dagg who sprints 30 metres to go next to the posts. That's superb from the All Blacks.
6 min - Some serious mauling from the All Blacks and somehow, Waisake Naholo wins a penalty at the ruck. Barrett relieves up to the French 10 metre line.
5 min - Another turn over to the All Blacks and Israel Dagg pumps it down field. But a great offload by a French winger sends them down the tram lines. They win a penalty off the ensuing ruck and the visitors are under pressure. French lineout 10 metres out
3 min - It's that man Matt Todd who turns over the ball and Beauden Barrett clears. French still on attack with a lineout 22 metres out.
2 min - All Blacks looked to get out of trouble after winning the line-out but the French are hot on attack 10 metres out
1 min - Straight off the bat, Brodie Retallick takes Louis Picamoles in the air and it's a penalty to the French. Wayne Barnes thought about going to the TMO but thought against it, there's a first...
We're underway...
8.59am - The French march toward the All Blacks as TJ leads a stirring version of 'ka mate'. Stirring stuff, let's rock and roll.
8.55am - The players run out to an absolutely deafening chant, the All Blacks in their alternate strip. The French sure know how to get behind their teams. Anthems to come.
8.53am - Weather won't be an issue tonight as it's very clear. But frostbite might.
8:50am - Players are just about to make their way out into a packed and very loud Stade de France. It'll be interesting to see how the turf shapes up, has ripped up like carpet in previous games.
Commentary will start from around 9:00am (NZT).
Lineups:
All Blacks
1. Joe Moody, 2. Dane Coles, 3. Owen Franks, 4. Brodie Retallick, 5. Sam Whitelock, 6. Jerome Kaino, 7. Matt Todd, 8. Kieran Read (c),
9. Tj Perenara, 10. Beauden Barrett, 11. Julian Savea, 12. Ryan Crotty, 13. Anton Lienert-Brown, 14. Waisake Naholo, 15. Israel Dagg
Reserves: 16 Codie Taylor, 17. Wyatt Crockett, 18. Charlie Faumuina, 19. Scott Barrett, 20. Ardie Savea, 21. Aaron Smith, 22. Aaron Cruden, 23. Rieko Ioane
Coach: Steve Hansen
France
1. Xavier Chiocci, 2. Guilhem Guirado (C), 3. Uini Atonio, 4. Sebastien Vahaamahina, 5. Yoann Maestri, 6. Charles Ollivon, 7. Kevin Gourdon, 8. Louis Picamoles,
9. Maxime Machenaud, 10. Camille Lopez, 11. Virimi Vakatawa, 12. Wesley Fofana, 13. Remi Lamerat,, 14. Noa Nakaitaci, 15. Brice Dulin
Reserves: 16. Camille Chat, 17. Cyril Baille, 18. Rabah Slimani, 19. Julien Le Devedec, 20. Damien Chouly, 21. Baptiste Serin, 22. Jean-Marc Doussain, 23 Gael Fickou
Coach: Guy Noves
Match facts and stats
Referee: Wayne Barnes (ENG)
Assistants: Federico Anselmi (ARG), Dudley Phillips (IRE)
TMO: Rowan Kitt (ENG)
Past meetings
Head to head: Played 56 France 12, New Zealand 43, draws 1
In France: Played 24, France 6, New Zealand 17, draws 1
Last time played: New Zealand 62 def France 13, August 17 2016 – Rugby World Cup quarterfinal
Last time at Stade de France: New Zealand 26 def France 19, November 9 2013
Stats
The All Blacks are on a nine-game winning streak against the French, dating back to 2009.
France have never beaten the All Blacks at this venue, losing four and drawing one.
France require one win to reach 400 Test wins.New Zealand (425) are the only country to pass that milestone.
The All Blacks have scored 77 tries in 2016 — four behind the New Zealand record of 81 with one Test to play.
Beauden Barrett requires 17 more points to become the fifth All Black to reach 300 Test points.
Head to head
France- $8.50 All Blacks - $1.06
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Pre-match banter:
Fear of the French is a myth
Former All Blacks captain Graham Mourie once told me there are two things you can predict about the French when it comes to rugby. They will be physical - and unpredictable.
Ah, those were the days.
In Mourie's 21 Tests he played France six times and lost to them twice. The 66 per cent win rate is well below the 76 per cent rate from the All Blacks' 56 Tests against France.
The issue with France is that they've beaten the All Blacks in dramatic fashion twice at World Cups, and that sticks in the craw. They also gave the All Blacks one heck of a scare in the 2011 final, or as Sir Graham Henry says "we smashed France by a point".
At last year's World Cup the All Blacks thrashed France 62-13 with a performance that put any ghosts of 2007 back in the dusty cupboard of French success.
In recent years the door on that cupboard has seldom creaked open as France have been the All Blacks' whipping boys.
In the past 20 Tests they've beaten France 17 times. The two defeats were in Dunedin in 2009 and the 2007 World Cup quarterfinal in Cardiff. They also drew in Paris in 2002. Since the 2011 World Cup final the All Blacks have played France five times for five wins, scoring three times as many points as France in the process.
Little suggests Sunday's test in Paris will be any different.
France were ordinary in the Six Nations with just two wins against Italy (by two points) and Ireland (by just one). The club game in France is wreaking havoc on the test team with the flood of foreign players effectively ruling French players out of contending for their national side.
It's ridiculous, but when you allow clubs to run the roost that's what happens.
French rugby fans are pessimists when it comes to playing the All Blacks and few will be giving them much of a chance this week. They thrashed Samoa two weeks ago and then lost by two points to the Wallabies last week. Former French midfielder Tony Marsh, who is a born and bred New Zealander, says if they'd won that match they might have had the confidence needed to beat the All Blacks.
But then, as a mate said to me earlier this week, "the French worry me".
Yes, that, at least, has never changed.