LONDON (AP) — England's George Ford missed two last-gasp shots at goal and New Zealand held on to win a dramatic but scrappy autumn rugby series opener 24-22 at Twickenham on Saturday.
A brilliant solo try by wing Mark Tele'a, converted from the sideline by Damian McKenzie, regained New Zealand a two-point lead with three minutes to go.
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England's Joe Marler looks on from the side lines during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's head coach Scott Robertson, centre, watches on as players line up ahead of the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's players perform the haka ahead of the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's Mark Tele'a, front, scores a try as England's Ellis Genge tries to tackle him during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's Will Jordan, left, breaks away to score a try during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
England's Immanuel Feyi-Waboso celebrates after scoring a try during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
England's Immanuel Feyi-Waboso scores a try during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
England's Marcus Smith, right, kicks the Balla as New Zealand's Sam Cane tries to defend during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's players celebrates at the end of the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
But then Anton Lienert-Brown was sin-binned for a head-on-head tackle and Ford lined up an angled penalty kick from 40 meters with two to go.
It rebounded off the right post.
The hosts got a scrum in the 22, though, with the sell-out crowd of 82,000 baying England on, but New Zealand spoiled the scrum, and a rushed drop goal attempt by Ford after the 80-minute hooter flew well wide.
The All Blacks completed a hat trick of wins against England this year, the margins by a combined 10 points.
“I didn't think we had that in the end. We got lucky with the penalty kick, but rugby is a game of fine margins and we will take it,” All Blacks No. 8 Ardie Savea told TNT Sports.
“For us to stay in it and defend the goal-line like that, I'm very proud of the boys. England's pack were bringing line speed and they were putting big shots on us. Glad to get the win.”
England was denied a first home win over the All Blacks since 2012 despite perfect kicking off the tee by Marcus Smith, who went six for six for 17 points.
The result was a setback to England hopes of improving on closing out tight games. It has lost four tests by seven or less this year, has a 4-5 win-loss record, and Australia, South Africa and Japan to come.
Coach Steve Borthwick defended replacing Smith with Ford, and rued losing by “the width of a post.”
“We didn't get the win we wanted but I think everyone can see this team is developing into a very strong team,” Borthwick said. “Ultimately this is the width of the post. That's the reality. It is the width of the post that the result goes one way or the other.”
Joe Marler's anti-haka comments dominated the buildup but the inactive England prop came to the game and was seen having a pre-match laugh with All Blacks coach Scott Robertson. The haka saw England advance shoulder to shoulder to halfway and the All Blacks advance as well within spitting distance to set the stage.
Smith kicked the first points and New Zealand replied with its first try when Wallace Sititi's offload with two defenders on him freed Tele'a into the right corner.
New Zealand responded to another Smith penalty with its second try. Will Jordan scissored off Beauden Barrett and raced 30 meters for his 36th try in his 38th test.
New Zealand led 14-6 after 30 minutes but while it was creating more, it was also making the most mistakes and allowing England to stay in touch.
The All Blacks conceded eight of the nine penalties in the first half, two in the scrum that was so reliable in the Rugby Championship but critically missing loosehead prop Ethan de Groot, who wasn't selected after breaching team rules.
Smith kicked England within two by halftime and the game was following the script of the two close July tests in New Zealand.
Winger Immanuel Feyi-Waboso underlined it moments into the new half when he achieved a try in every match against New Zealand this year, finishing off Smith's intercept on his own 22.
Smith's fifth penalty gave England a 22-14 lead to start the last quarter, and he was replaced by Ford, who was given his first match in five weeks after a thigh tear, to shepherd England home.
McKenzie came on for Tele'a and nailed his first goalkick in the 67th. But Tele'a was already back on after Beauden Barrett needed a head injury check.
With tension rising, the All Blacks forced a kickable penalty with five minutes to go but tapped it. Tele'a was on the end of a chain with the England defense covering but he shrugged off Ford and carried Harry Randall over the try-line.
McKenzie's equally remarkable touchline conversion put New Zealand in front but then its year-long discipline issues reared up when Lienert-Brown was yellow-carded.
But Ford couldn't seize his chances.
"I tell you what, he hasn’t missed many in his career so we certainly can't blame him for that,” captain Jamie George said.
AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby
England's Joe Marler looks on from the side lines during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's head coach Scott Robertson, centre, watches on as players line up ahead of the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's players perform the haka ahead of the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's Mark Tele'a, front, scores a try as England's Ellis Genge tries to tackle him during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's Will Jordan, left, breaks away to score a try during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
England's Immanuel Feyi-Waboso celebrates after scoring a try during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
England's Immanuel Feyi-Waboso scores a try during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
England's Marcus Smith, right, kicks the Balla as New Zealand's Sam Cane tries to defend during the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
New Zealand's players celebrates at the end of the Autumn Nations Series rugby match between England and New Zealand, at Twickenham stadium, in London Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
HAVANA (AP) — Trumpets and drums played solemnly at Havana's airport Thursday as white-gloved Cuban soldiers marched out of a plane carrying urns with remains of the 32 Cuban officers killed during a stunning U.S. attack on Venezuela.
Nearby, thousands of Cubans lined one of Havana’s most iconic streets to await the bodies as the island remained under threat by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.
The soldiers' shoes clacked as they marched stiff-legged into the headquarters of the Ministry of the Armed Forces and placed the urns on a long table next to the pictures of those killed. Tens of thousands of people paid their respects, saluting the urns or holding their hand over their heart, many of them drenched from standing outside in a heavy downpour.
Thursday’s mass funeral was only one of a handful that the Cuban government has organized over the past half-century.
The soldiers were part of the security detail of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro during the Jan. 3 raid on his residence to seize the former leader and bring him to the U.S. to face drug trafficking charges.
State television also showed images of what it said were more than a dozen wounded combatants from the raid, accompanied by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez after arriving Wednesday night from Venezuela. A man identified in state media as Col. Pedro Domínguez attended Thursday's ceremony in a wheelchair.
He said it was a “disproportionate attack” that killed 11 colleagues around him as they slept. Domínguez said he was committed to doing “whatever it takes to defend this people and to remain united in the face of threats from the United States.”
Tensions between Cuba and the U.S. have spiked, with Trump recently demanding that the Caribbean country make a deal with him before it is “too late.” He did not explain what kind of deal.
Trump also has said that Cuba will no longer live off Venezuela's money and oil. Experts warn that the abrupt end of oil shipments could be catastrophic for Cuba, which is already struggling with serious blackouts and a crumbling power grid.
Officials unfurled a massive flag at Havana's airport as President Miguel Díaz-Canel, clad in military garb, stood silent next to former President Raúl Castro, with what appeared to be the relatives of those killed looking on nearby.
Cuban Interior Minister Lázaro Alberto Álvarez Casas called the slain soldiers “heroes” of an anti-imperialist struggle spanning both Cuba and Venezuela. In an apparent reference to the U.S., he said the “enemy” speaks of “high-precision operations, of troops, of elites, of supremacy.
“We, on the other hand, speak of faces, of families who have lost a father, a son, a husband, a brother,” Álvarez said.
The events demonstrate that “imperialism may possess more sophisticated weapons; it may have immense material wealth; it may buy the minds of the wavering; but there is one thing it will never be able to buy: the dignity of the Cuban people,” he said.
Carmen Gómez, a 58-year-old industrial designer, was among the thousands of Cubans who lined a street where motorcycles and military vehicles thundered by with the remains of those killed.
“They are people willing to defend their principles and values, and we must pay tribute to them,” Gómez said. “It’s because of the sense of patriotism that Cubans have, and that will always unite us.”
The 32 military personnel ranged in age from 26 to 60 and were part of protection agreements between the two countries.
Officials in Cuba have said they expect a massive demonstration Friday across from the U.S. Embassy to protest the deaths.
“People are upset and hurt ... many do believe that the dead are martyrs” of a historic struggle against the United States, analyst and former diplomat Carlos Alzugaray told The Associated Press.
In October 1976, then-President Fidel Castro led a massive demonstration to bid farewell to the 73 people killed in the bombing of a civilian flight financed by anti-revolutionary leaders in the U.S. Most of the victims were Cuban athletes.
In December 1989, officials organized a ceremony to honor the more than 2,000 Cuban combatants who died in Angola during Cuba’s participation in a war that defeated the South African army.
In October 1997, memorial services were held following the arrival of the remains of guerrilla commander Ernesto “Che” Guevara and six of his comrades, who died in 1967.
The latest mass burial is critical to honor those slain, said José Luis Piñeiro, a 60-year-old doctor who lived for four years in Venezuela.
“I don’t think Trump is crazy enough to come and enter a country like this, ours, and if he does, he’s going to have to take an aspirin or some painkiller to avoid the headache he’s going to get,” Piñeiro said. “These were 32 heroes who fought him. Can you imagine an entire nation? He’s going to lose.”
The remains arrived a day after the U.S. announced $3 million in additional aid to help the island recover from the catastrophic Hurricane Melissa. The first flight took off on Wednesday, and a second flight was scheduled for Friday. A commercial vessel also will deliver food and other supplies.
Cuba had said on Wednesday that any contributions will be channeled through the government.
But U.S. State Department foreign assistance official Jeremy Lewin said Thursday that the U.S. was working with Cuba’s Catholic Church to distribute aid, as part of Washington's efforts to give assistance directly to the Cuban people.
“There’s nothing political about cans of tuna and rice and beans and pasta,” he said Thursday, warning that the Cuban government should not intervene or divert supplies. “We will be watching, and we will hold them accountable.”
Lewin said the Cuban government has a choice to: “Step down or better provide towards people.” Lewin added that “if there was no regime,” the U.S. would provide “billions and billions of dollars” in assistance, as well as investment and development: “That’s what lies on the other side of the regime for the Cuban people.”
Rodríguez, the Cuban foreign minister, said the U.S. government was “exploiting what appears to be a humanitarian gesture for opportunistic and politically manipulative purposes.”
Coto contributed from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
People line up outside the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces where the remains are on display of the Cuban officers who were killed during the U.S. operation in Venezuela that captured President Nicolas Maduro, as it sprinkles rain in Havana, Cuba, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Military members line up outside the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces where the urns containing the remains of Cuban officers, killed during the U.S. operation in Venezuela that captured President Nicolas Maduro, are on display in Havana, Cuba, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Military members pay their last respects to Cuban officers who were killed during the U.S. operation in Venezuela that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, at the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces where the urns containing the remains are displayed during a ceremony in Havana, Cuba, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
A motorcade transports urns containing the remains of Cuban officers, who were killed during the U.S. operation in Venezuela that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, through Havana, Cuba, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Soldiers carry urns containing the remains of Cuban officers, who were killed during the U.S. operation in Venezuela that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, at the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces in Havana, Cuba, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Adalberto Roque /Pool Photo via AP)
A motorcade transports urns containing the remains of Cuban officers, who were killed during the U.S. operation in Venezuela that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, through Havana, Cuba, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
A motorcade transports urns containing the remains of Cuban officers, who were killed during the U.S. operation in Venezuela that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, through Havana, Cuba, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
People line the streets of Havana, Cuba, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, to watch the motorcade carrying urns containing the remains of Cuban officers killed during the U.S. operation in Venezuela that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
Workers fly the Cuban flag at half-staff at the Anti-Imperialist Tribune near the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026, in memory of Cubans who died two days before in Caracas, Venezuela during the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by U.S. forces. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
