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'It's opened the door': All Blacks wary of teams using Springbok blueprint
With all eyes on the Rugby World Cup opening match between hosts France and the All Blacks, the New Zealand side are keen to move on from the historic defeat South Africa handed them just two weeks ago.
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Heading into the Twickenham Test, the All Blacks’ biggest-ever losing margin was 21 points, a deficit suffered twice at the hands of the Wallabies on Australian soil – both also in World Cup years (2019 and 1999).
The 35-7 dismantling inflicted by the Springboks comfortably took the crown as the heaviest defeat New Zealand have ever suffered and put an end to the team’s 11-game unbeaten run.
A historic loss just two weeks out from a Rugby World Cup has invalidated New Zealand’s title aspirations in the eyes of some. But the beating, within the context of the match, didn’t stress All Blacks head coach Ian Foster. That’s not to say he enjoys being reminded of it.
“It was a beautiful day out there, I woke up really happy this morning, went for a lovely walk and now you’ve asked me about that again,” Foster smirked when asked for an updated reflection on the match.
“First lesson: Have 15 men on the field. When you lose an experienced guy who has been your power player and you lose him from your pack then you do become very vulnerable.
“That’s one key lesson and it’s going to be one key lesson going into the World Cup that we all know but we’ve just got to make sure that we really work hard on the discipline side of our game to keep it 15 on 15.
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“If we’ve got 15 on 15 I’m very confident in that space.
“What we had to do was we had to adapt to a strategy, we had Josh Lord come on, we had Tamaiti Williams, we had Fletcher Newell; Fletcher hasn’t played much rugby this year, Tamaiti’s only played a couple of test matches and there’s some massive learning going on there.
“The speed in which you have to react against a very experienced Springbok team, and they utilised their front and their back particularly well. They only had one lineout maul go through us, so they were smart and they were smart against a team with a red card.
“So the lessons are pretty simple, to be honest. I don’t think there’s anything there that we don’t really know, we’ve just got to get better and better.
“But it’s certainly, it’s opened the door for others to come and try to exploit that and we’ve got to make sure we respond.”
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Improved discipline and set-piece strength will be essential if the Kiwis are to match up against the French, who will be cheered on by an 80,000-strong contingent of Les Bleus fanatics.
Forwards coach Jason Ryan echoed the sentiment shared by Foster, emphasising the impact of the red card and the experience of the young players who saw extended minutes.
The coaches and captain again voiced their view that the Springboks were throwing their jumpers across the lineout and landing “on top” of the New Zealand pack.
Ultimately, they say it’s up to themselves to adapt to the game.
“We’ve got to make some shifts and clearly adapt around a few things,” Ryan said.
“We’ve got to be a bit smarter around that area.”
Comments on RugbyPass
It’s going to be Scott Barrett. He’s the coaches mate and captain of a previously elite team. Ardie a great option but scooter has worked with the coach and Ardie still as big a leader as needed.
22 Go to commentsI commend Colin Scotts bio All Balls. He was the first Aussie to make it to NFL. But he was poached and did a full apprenticeship at the University of Hawaii. He was 130kgs surfed played 1st grade cricket etc. big guy by normal but not NFL standards and a top athlete. Even then the nfl were picking up Tongans and Samoans for their natural size and explosive power. They want explosive power not cardio from the big boys so a guy like Taniela Tupou would have been good if picked up young enough. He has fast twitch and they’d bulk the little lad up and give him something to do. soccer teams set up academies and look for Over Sara’s talent eg Messi was at Barcelona since a teenager and harry kewell went to Leeds as a teenager like 16 or something.
11 Go to commentsThe article alludes to the fact that this isn’t about picking a captain. But picking a great captain. So who would make for a great All Black captain - not just an obvious or safe shoo-in? I’m not sure Ardie’s the guy and Barret doesn’t stand out either.
22 Go to commentsI guess we may all agree on the fact, that the ABs and Boks are the two in contest for No 1 in rugby history (the triple-A sort of) …. the Wallabies, England and France are the next tier, with Ireland being the new kid in town (AA) …. in my view it makes little sense creating imaginary competitions (unless you have too much time to waste)
45 Go to commentsWhat a joke. Total joke and the pundits commentating, all of whom know a bit about the game, could barely disguise their contempt. Reaching for the card then pulling back when he realised a red card would carry further match suspensions is simply not his decision to make. A clear and obvious influence on the outcome of this match and indeed, the championship path.
4 Go to commentsI like the idea, in NZ the Ranfurly Shield and NPC coexist, both having their own bragging rights. The World Cup would be the pinnacle, but the competition and travels of these trophies would be interesting.
45 Go to commentsDon’t worry Sonny bill Williams leave that awkward situation about the curfew in the pass whoever it was it doesn’t matter its no big deal we back our All Blacks through the storm and the thunder until we see the Sun light again.
42 Go to commentsWho listens to this retard? He was a massive liability as a player but obviously a media sensation
42 Go to commentsI’m not surprised by such ‘virtue signalling’ by Sonny Boy. Butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth. He’s such a pious Islamic muppet, imo.
42 Go to commentsI’ve actually never heard of the guy (then I don’t watch League as it is boring). But if he is good enough.. then good luck to him. If not, well, he can always return to league.
2 Go to commentsIt is pretty clear that by almost any measure that NZ are a more successful rugby nation than South Africa. Quite aside from the distasteful events during the last RWC final. NZ lead SA in all significant measurements.
45 Go to commentsDickson went to his pocket for a card, saw who it was, changed his mind and spoke at length to TMO. One angle clearly shows Care diving over a Saints player to kill the ball. 1st yellow, reason given for not Red was player was falling backwards. He was only falling backwards after contact with Lawes. Graham try should have stood. Mitchell did not have both hands on the ball, ball went forward from a Saints boot dragging over it. 2 intentional knock-on's. One of which had an overlap on the outside. If Quins are happy to win by intentional foul play, then it does not say much for them. Would appear to be a bad day for Karl Dickson, also for the RFU in appointing a Ref who spent 8 years as a player at one of the clubs.
4 Go to commentsLet’s not forget about Ardie Savea just yet.
7 Go to commentsThe URC and the Euro Championscup can’t run at the same time, basically dilutes both competitions.
2 Go to comments“While Sotutu should start at No.8 for the All Blacks against England, but it’s only in that arena that he can prove just how good he really is.” And that my friends is where simply hasnt shone despite multiple opportunities. Even in this performance you can see what did him in in the test arena..he almost always still runs at the opposition almost ramrod upright making him easier to stop than it should be.
7 Go to commentsShould have been 0-0 and a message from SR CEO to both teams - “don’t worry about turning up next year”.
4 Go to commentsGreat work Owen Franks. A great of this team, scoring his first try for the Crusaders since 2010.He was beaming, justifiably. A fine win, he and the rest did the job up front.
1 Go to commentsDanny Care. Lang in die tand.
1 Go to commentsBig empty stadium does nothing for atmosphere but munster are playing well with solid performance
1 Go to commentsYes, Fiji can win the World Cup! With that belief plus their christian faith🙏 and hard work it is achievable. Great article. Ian Duncan Fiji resident 1981-84
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