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The All Blacks aren’t looking for excuses after their shock Bledisloe Cup loss, with hooker Dane Coles insisting they didn’t play a “B” team against the Wallabies in Brisbane. After retaining the trophy with a record win in the third Test in Sydney, the New Zealanders left out two-try hero Richie Mo’unga and bustling winger Caleb Clarke in a reshuffled backline.
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With four debutants in the All Blacks match-day squad, the revved-up Australians posted a 24-22 victory.
Coles, who was also on the sidelines, bristled at the suggestion they had taken the Wallabies lightly by not picking all of their stars and said those players selected had earned their spots.
“We don’t really feel like there’s a first-choice player, or however you want to put it,” the veteran hooker said on Monday.
“Whoever is selected is the best 23 and it’s the same for those selected for this week.
“We don’t have a hierarchy – we have full confidence in whoever gets the job to do it well.
“We don’t see it as an A team or B team, we’re one team.”
After four successive Tests against Australia, the All Blacks will face Argentina on Saturday afternoon at Sydney’s Bankwest Stadium.
It’s the Pumas’ first match of the Tri-Nations after two warm-up games against an Australia A outfit.
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“It’s exciting facing another opposition, got a bit more homework,” Coles said.
“We will take the learnings from the weekend and get better from it and face a new team which is a little unknown, but they will be a very physical team.
“They’ve got some outstanding players are looking sharp and ready to go.”
Ian Foster says many teams have baited the All Blacks. #AUSvNZL #BledisloeCup pic.twitter.com/Fs9qLooDJW
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 9, 2020
One “learning” the All Blacks will take is on their tackling technique, after prop Ofa Tuuangafasi was sent off for a high tackle.
Australia’s Lachie Swinton suffered the same fate in the Suncorp Stadium match.
Coles said the New Zealanders needed to be better to avoid such costly cards, adding that discipline was an area they had identified to improve in their match r eview.
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“We do a lot of tackling practice in the week and it’s only a split second to make that decision but we just have to lower our sights and targets to not get those red cards again,” he said.
Comments on RugbyPass
The best outside centre in the world at one point. He will be greatly missed.
2 Go to commentsYip his great for the big moments when needed as a safa really enjoy watching him
4 Go to commentsOne that will start to come up from now on is penalties for back pushes during kick chase scrambles. Very difficult to detect. In Croke Park if you replay the Hendy NH try, you will see Furbank push Porter in the back, who collides with Larmour knocking the ball across into Hendy’s path to dot down. A more significant example was in the RWC QTR final where Arendse pushes Fickou into two other French players for the ball to spill into Arendse’s path for him to gather and run in to score SAs first try. Not cheating if you are not caught and very difficult to spot but with kicking becoming so critical I feel its an area that will referreeed/TMO-ed more.
3 Go to commentsWhat a pathetic little twit Andy Goode is, as if we care what he thinks…..😂
114 Go to commentsFoxy has been a wonderful player for the Scarlets and Wales.
2 Go to commentsNika the Georgian is the best referee in the world at the moment. Luckily we will be spared the shite SH refs and Barnes will hopefully remain retired given how shite and embarrassing he was at the RWC.
3 Go to commentsThis is the most exciting game of the summer imo, as we really won’t know in advance how both teams are going to play. - Will Robertson just reproduce his Crusaders tactics from last year, or will there be a conscious effort to borrow from the Hurricanes and Blues, and from the aspects of the ABs world cup strategy that worked well? - England under Borthwick have put in some good performances playing attacking rugby, and some good performances playing kick-oriented defensive rugby. Will Borthwick try to merge them together into a single all-court game, or will he continue switching between different approaches depending on the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition?
1 Go to commentsI’m predicting an aggregate points difference of no more than +/-10pts across both matches this series.
1 Go to commentsI’m predicting an aggregate points difference of no more than +/-10pts across both matches this series.
9 Go to commentsFinals are always tense affairs for the players so I do not expect this to be a spectacle of running rugby unfortunately.
3 Go to commentsBulls***': Ex-England international calls out Eben Etzebeth… Not to his face but from very far away… after he’d left. Checked to make sure he wasn’t in the building.
114 Go to commentsHopefully this will mean a new Auckland league team to support in the west. Big Warriors fan but it’s very, very stale on that front and I’d like the option of another team if it was to watch league again. League needs to step up BIG time if its to get anywhere, another AK team and something from the capitol or south is a must for the game.
3 Go to commentsGood, deep interview, nice job Frankie!
1 Go to commentsNRL players don’t have anywhere near the number of Tests. Some people would be happy having Rest Homes full if 40 yo ex-players walking, or hobbling more like it, into walls. It’s just a game!
4 Go to commentsNOW Razor is worried about ABs getting injured or overplayed! Didn’t bother him last year. He happily played his AB Crusaders.
4 Go to commentsWhat is the World Rugby U20 players born year.
2 Go to commentsMuch like the Chiefs finally gave up waiting for Atu Moli to ever not be injured, you have to wonder if the Chiefs and Crusaders will let Josh Lord and Ethan Blackadder go next season. They’re being well paid to sit in the injury ward every year. Better off putting those funds towards someone who might actually play.
7 Go to commentsShowed better basic skills than some nz Super sides, who probably would have botched some of those backline moves. This tournament really is too short though. Needs more teams, or have them play two rounds to properly prepare them for the near full-time NH U20 sides.
4 Go to commentsGood grief it’s only six months. Probably just upset it’s not an established kiwi entering their prime they can “project” into green to join the rest.
3 Go to commentsGood player but far from being best in the world. That's an exaggeration. Perhaps Best in world by Northern Hemisphere standards and biasis but certainly not Southern Hemi standards
4 Go to comments