Damian McKenzie: All Blacks won waiting game of Ellis Park altitude

All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie urged patience and trust in the game plan during the halftime break at Ellis Park on Saturday night, knowing the altitude and pace of the game would eventually take a toll on the giant Springbok pack.

That’s the insight Damian McKenzie provided after the full-time whistle in Johannesburg, having just helped steer his side to a victory that aligned impressively with the All Blacks’ stated game plan.

The Kiwis promised a fast game, knowing their opponents were built for power more so than pace, and absorbed plenty of that power early in a fever-pitched opening quarter.

The South African players weren’t the only ones vulnerable to fatigue, though, as the Ellis Park crowd dropped out of the game in the second half as New Zealand started to take control. Outlasting the Boks was the name of the game for Rennie and company, and they delivered on that by winning the second half by 21 points to three.

“It’s very rewarding. We’ve been planning for this tour, and this first Test, for a long time,” McKenzie told reporters after the win. “Obviously, South Africa are leading the way, the world’s best at the moment. So, to come away with a great win is extremely satisfying.

“We’re extremely proud of that effort. We know it’s just the start for us. There’s plenty to take out of it, but we have to enjoy the win.”

Points Flow Chart

New Zealand win +17

Time in lead

34

Mins in lead

42

43%

% Of Game In Lead

53%

58%

Possession Last 10 min

42%

0

Points Last 10 min

7

There’s no rest for the wicked, though, with a huge slate of games remaining for the All Blacks, all of which are a long way from home. Tuesday night will see the final midweek fixture of the tour come and go,

“We obviously know that there’s three more Tests, so we’ve got to keep our feet firmly on the ground,” McKenzie added.

“Test rugby’s not easy, and to win over here at Ellis Park is no mean feat. So, first of all we have to enjoy that, but we have to move on quickly. We’ve got another game on Tuesday against the Lions, and then a Test down in Cape Town.

“South Africa are too good a team to just sit back, and they’ll throw everything at us next week.”

There were large stretches of the game that displayed South Africa’s dangerous attack, but the All Blacks weathered the storm, even if it wasn’t always a convincing defensive performance.

“South Africa threw a lot of punches in that first half. To be losing by one point after the first half was pretty good, to be fair. They threw a lot at us, and we knew the challenge that they posed against us. We knew when we got our opportunities, and we got a few of those in the second half; being able to nail a couple of those was great. To give ourselves a decent lead there was satisfying.

“But (the message) was just to stay patient, trust our game plan, and just to get back into our work. We knew there were opportunities through playing at altitude, so the lungs start to hurt a little bit late in that second half.

“But when there are opportunities to play, we obviously play with a bit of optimism and create opportunities, and I think we were able to do that and score some good tries in the end.”