All Blacks looking to make amends for 2021 loss with opening match 'spectacle'

While it’s been two years since the match, the All Blacks‘ 40-25 loss at the hands of the French is as relevant as ever, with the learnings from the game fuelling Rugby World Cup preparations ahead of the opening match on Friday night (local time).

It was the final round of the 2021 End of Year Tour and the All Blacks were reeling from a 29-20 loss to Ireland the week prior when they pulled up to Stade de France.

A raucous Dublin crowd was followed by the boisterous Parisian faithful in full voice, dreaming of a first win over New Zealand since 2009.

In the end, both European sides prevailed over the All Blacks who continued their slide down the world rankings.

Reflecting on the loss and the soundtrack that accompanied it, the All Blacks have some key takeaways that have featured heavily in discussion ahead of the rematch.

“The crowds are different here,” David Havili told reporters in Lyon. “If you guys are UFC fans, just a couple of days ago the UFC was huge. They were loud, they were cheering, singing, and they bring that same sort of vibe into the rugby arena and it’s awesome to be part of.”

“You’ve got to make sure that communication is key, because out there on the park it is quite loud, and being able to have your signals to make sure that you’re getting across all of your messages.

“It’s going to be awesome to have such a passionate crowd out there and (we’re) certainly excited to feel that.”

The men who inflicted that loss on New Zealand are of course the central focus of the reflection, with one man in particular drawing attention.

Head-to-Head

Last 5 Meetings

Wins

2

Draws

0

Wins

3

Average Points scored

21

33

First try wins

40%

Home team wins

100%

Antoine Dupont was named World Rugby Men’s Player of the Year after his sublime form throughout 2021 and remarkable performance against New Zealand, and the 26-year-old Frenchman has only become more of a threat in the years following.

Havili came off the bench in that 2021 Test and knows the importance of executing against the French while shutting down their elusive halfback.

The midfielder admits every member of the New Zealand team will have to be on high alert “all around the field because there’s X-factor across the whole French side and we just have to make sure that we can have our plans in place to make sure we can try and stop that.

“As a team, we probably didn’t execute as many opportunities as we would like and France took theirs really well.

“It’s going to be an awesome spectacle, blessed to be a part of this team.”

The loss two years ago, as well as the defeat New Zealand suffered two weeks ago against South Africa, offered lessons and challenges for the Kiwi players.

“It gives you an opportunity to get better, and that’s what we’re all about as professional players. You take the tough losses on the chin and you move forward and you get better and that’s what we’ve got to do this weekend.

“I think we’ve done that over the last couple of weeks and certainly put a lot of those learnings into the last couple of trainings.”

Dupont has left a strong impression on Finlay Christie, who may come up against the halfback this weekend. Christie spoke of the potential matchup between Aaron Smith and Dupont as an all-time classic.

“I’d say if you could put them both into one, [the resulting player] would probably be the best of all time.

“Aaron has built his game off passing which all nines [halfbacks] have to be good at. Then you’ve got Dupont who has that other x-factor of awesome running and kicking game and he can pull these plays out of nowhere.

“They are both world-class players. What a spectacle it is going to be to see them going head-to-head.”