The All Blacks’ impressive scrum effort, backed by a much tidier lineout display, was backed by a much tidier lineout display. They relished the chance to build their plays while also introducing six new players to Test match play.

The Fijians enjoyed their best moments in the middle of the second half, doing the All Blacks a favour as they introduced their substitutes en masse, ensuring those newcomers received a realistic introduction to Test play. That was most obvious for halfback Noah Hotham, whose start was made in the first half after an injury to starting halfback Cortez Ratima was injured.

Complementing the scrum performance was strong running consistently through the game by second five-eighths Anton Lienert-Brown, who took on the Fijians every time he touched the ball. He worked well with debut centre Billy Proctor, who also enjoyed an impressive display, marking the occasion with a try.

Another to score on debut was replacement hooker George Bell, who drove over for the last try of the game. 

The New Zealanders took full advantage of their 58 per cent first-half possession advantage to run the ball often, freed from the confines of England’s rush defence, to lead 26-5 at halftime. The Fijians’ accuracy did not help them, as they missed 26 first-half tackles compared to seven by the All Blacks.

While they improved in the second half, they were unable to complete the breakouts they achieved, several times losing the ball close to the All Blacks’ line.

The All Blacks settled into their routines, and it was a ninth-minute kick by first five-eighths Damian McKenzie to Sevu Reece on the right wing to create the first try. Reece passed inside to Proctor, who went to the ground. Quick ball saw McKenzie step through the line. He linked with fullback Beauden Barrett, and wing Caleb Clarke cut back against the grain for the try.

Three minutes later, from the first scrum, quick ball again saw second five-eighths Lienert-Brown make another break, and from the ruck Ratima, took a gap to score on starting debut.

Fiji struck back in the 17th minute, after a period in the All Blacks half. It was a cross-kick by first five-eighths Isaiah Armstrong-Ravula to wing Semi Redradra that opened their chance. In the tackle, the pass inside found fullback Vilimoni Botitu, who scored.

Proctor scorched onto the attack from the restart, and while points reward was not immediate, he was on hand from a 25th-minute scrum 15m out from the Fiji line when the All Blacks went right initially before moving back to the left, where Barrett fed Proctor through to score.

Fiji had no answer to the All Blacks’ scrum power, even on their ball, and from one scrum, the All Blacks pushed over the ball, won a penalty and kicked to the corner. Another penalty from the lineout play saw them opt for a tap penalty move. Hooker Asafo Aumua took the ball to the line, and it was No8 Ardie Savea, who was hard to stop whenever he had the ball in hand, running back across the ruck, who took the ball, propped and ducked through the defence to score.

Unfortunately, in the restart, Ratima was injured and forced to leave the field, giving Hotham his All Blacks debut.

In the follow-up play, Fiji attacked, and wing Jiuta Wainiqolo looked to have scored in McKenzie’s tackle, but a TMO check revealed he dropped the ball over the line.

Wing Sevu Reece was on the end of quick passing through the line to open the second half, scoring with his 17th Test match try three minutes after the start.

Clarke’s second try was denied in the 53rd minute after the TMO showed that the gap Reece took to create the movement was made possible because lock Scott Barrett took out Fijian replacement prop Haereiti Hetet off the ball.

But it was only a momentary setback as solid defence opened up more ball as the All Blacks flooded the field with their substitutes, who combined in the 58th minute when No8 Wallace Sititi ripped the ball free in a tackle. Hotham moved the ball to replacement prop Pasilio Tosi. He made ground before finding Sititi, who took the ball to the line, where replacement prop Ethan de Groot picked the ball up and charged over to score.

Sititi again featured with solid runs to set up the final try for Bell in the 76th minute.

Scorers: New Zealand 47 (Caleb Clarke, Cortez Ratima, Billy Proctor, Ardie Savea, Sevu Reece, Ethan de Groot, George Bell tries; Damian McKenzie 6 con) Fiji 5 (Vilimoni Botitu try). HT: 26-5.

Who’s ready for San Diego Comic-Con? Sure, last year was a little weird for the convention — there were a lot of Hall H cancellations amid the Hollywood strikes, and some panelists who did show up had to avoid talking about struck projects. One thing that didn’t change, though? A bunch of trailers dropped during the convention. Hopefully, we can look forward to that tradition continuing this July. The SDCC schedule for 2024 includes The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Transformers One, Everybody Still Hates Chris, and more. There are also the usual suspects: Marvel will likely update its plans for the next phase(s) of its cinematic universe, and there will be several Star Wars panels. So far, it’s already been confirmed that HBO’s The Penguin and AMC/AMC+’s The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol will debut trailers at SDCC. Other panel descriptions are more coy, only vaguely mentioning a first look or preview. Make your predictions/manifestations now, and check back as we update this post with all the new trailers that end up coming out of SDCC from July 25 to July 28.

The homelessness crisis in San Diego is complex and urgent, demanding innovative ideas and decisive action.

Over the last year, my team at the Homelessness Strategies and Solutions Department has worked to add more than 900 new sheltering options — including traditional shelter beds and safe sleeping sites — but we know we have more work to do. Approximately 80 percent of shelter bed referrals are not met, because we don’t have enough resources to keep pace. Our outreach teams often have to tell people there is no space available — this is not acceptable to me and should not be acceptable to anyone. The status quo will remain unless bold action is taken.

We have looked at dozens of properties, both city-owned and private property, to keep adding much needed shelter beds. We’ve turned non-transitional spaces into temporary shelter for San Diegans trying to end their homelessness, but those are temporary solutions. San Diego has never had a long-term shelter campus solely dedicated and designed to help those experiencing homelessness. As a leader in this space, the type of campus proposed at Hope @ Vine would set the bar for how local governments address homelessness.

The property located near Middletown presents us the unique opportunity to create a space to address the varying populations experiencing homelessness, ensuring we are incorporating best practices, lessons learned from siting shelters in the past, voices from local leaders and those with lived experience. This facility will honor the humanity and dignity of every individual being served. We aren’t looking to lease a warehouse, we’re planning to build a transformative campus to deliver services and ultimately save lives in a modern, compassionate way that all San Diegans can be proud of.

When considering the size of the project, I understand some may be concerned about density and scale. Rather than a large, impersonal space, I ask you to imagine a bright, welcoming, state-of-the-art facility designed with care and intention. Creating a successful and sustainable design for this project is a top priority for me and my team. With 65,000 square feet of indoor space in separate buildings, we can create individual spaces for different populations potentially including families, older adults, veterans and other San Diegans. In essence, it will function as multiple shelters on one campus with outdoor patios and dining areas, a commercial kitchen, pet spaces, laundry facilities, and round-the-clock security and staffing to enhance safety for everyone. We also envision onsite medical and behavioral health services, as well as case management, job training, and other wrap-around services, will be offered.

It will be a place of hope and opportunity, helping people transition out of crisis and into a clean, safe and inclusive environment, setting them up to improve their lives and become self-sufficient.

Where do we go next? If this project is approved by the San Diego City Council on Monday, we have more work to do. One of my top priorities is hearing from those who have personally experienced homelessness. These individuals will be part of a working group with regional experts to help guide our efforts. This collaboration will be invaluable.

I know the Hope @ Vine campus will be a life saving asset for our most vulnerable residents working to end their homelessness with the ultimate goal of connecting people to long-term, stable housing. We know this can be a model that other cities look to as they similarly grapple with the complexities of homelessness. In the face of such urgent need, we cannot turn a blind eye to an opportunity that holds so much promise. The cost of doing nothing is too high.

Jarman is director of the city of San Diego’s Homelessness Strategies and Solutions Department and lives in San Diego.

Originally Published: July 19, 2024 at 4:09 p.m.