The Scarlets flanker bagged the second of three first-half tries for GB as they raced into a 21-0 interval lead. Scottish wing Mark Bennett crossed for the first try after a chip and chase and Dan Norton scored the third.
Skipper Tom Mitchell converted all three tries and the British side were looking very much in charge at the break. But the All Blacks hit back and gradually eased themselves back into the contest as they dominated possession.
Team GB made they fight for every inch and it took the much fancied New Zealanders three minutes of the second half to notch their first try from Rico Ioane. The conversion went wide and another minute passed before Regan Ware crossed for a second try for the Kiwis.
This time Gillies Kaka hit the mark with his conversion and the comeback was well and truly on. But the British defence stood firm and even when Lewis Ormond crossed for the third try with a minute to go, and Kaka cut the gap to two points with the conversion, Sam Cross controlled the re-start and they played out the final 30 seconds to notch a famous win.
It meant Team GB topped the Pool with three wins out of three to go into the quarter-finals later in the day, while the All Blacks were forced to sit and wait to see if they reached the top eight with five points from their three games.
In the end they scraped into the last eight by a single point on points difference after Fiji beat USA 24-19. It means the quarter final line-up later in the day will be:Â Fiji v New Zealand; Japan v France; Team GB v Argentina; South Africa v Australia.
“We were really clinical in our attack in the first half but you can never switch off against a team like New Zealand. They have shown their pedigree for so many years and they came back at us really hard in that second half,” said Team GB skipper Mitchell.
“We struggled to get possession and we also struggled to get defensive shape because they were pulling us around. They have got some great players and big ball carriers but we scrambled well – a lot of that is hard graft and I’m so proud of the way the boys did that.
“We played really good sevens in the first half and they did the same in the second half but did well to get the win.
We always want to do well and play hard because it is a privilege wearing the Team GB vest so we will continue to go out and give it our all.”
