'South Africa losing doesn't really change anything for us'
The All Blacks‘ 39-0 win over the Pumas last weekend ensured they finished the third round of the Rugby Championship on maximum points, having also scored bonus-point victories in their prior two games with the Wallabies. When the Wallabies trumped the Springboks in the match played directly afterwards, it’s fair to suggest the All Blacks very quickly had one hand on the trophy for 2021.
With 15 points to their name, the All Blacks sit 6 competition points clear of the Springboks. While it’s clearly not impossible for South Africa to make that difference up over the final three rounds of the competition, that would require NZ to drop at least one game – probably two.
As such, Ian Foster could be forgiven for rolling out an inexperienced side in the team’s final match-up with Argentina for the year, but the All Blacks head coach has confirmed that the Springboks’ loss at the hands of the Wallabies hasn’t altered the selectors’ thinking. In fact, much of the side named to take on the Pumas this Saturday was planned in advance, before a ball was even kicked last weekend.
“We basically had 99 per cent of these changes locked in when we went into this two-game phase with Argentina,” Foster said, after naming a team with 11 changes to the run-on side.
“South Africa losing doesn’t really change anything for us. It’s given us a lead in the Rugby Championship but we’d be foolish to go in and hand that back straight away. We clearly want to maximise our opportunities in front of us.”
That means not slipping up against the Pumas, who scored a historic first-ever victory over the All Blacks in Newcastle last year.
After last weekend’s 39-0 victory, Foster is well aware that Argentina will be hurting, and will respond in kind.
“This is a massive game for us,” he said. “We know Argentina’s going to respond. We know we had a really good win last week and so we know expectations are high on us and it’d be dangerous if you think it’s just going to all happen and then we’re going to get smacked.
“This group, there’s a lot of pressure on this group. We’ve got to make sure that we have a really good performance this weekend and from a Championship perspective, this win’s vital for us.”
The All Blacks haven’t won the Rugby Championship since 2018.
Ian Foster explains the widespread changes ? #AllBlacks #ARGvNZLhttps://t.co/2cJ8NUijwR
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 16, 2021
In 2019, the competition was compressed into just three matches per team, as opposed to the normal home and away format, and the All Blacks managed a win over the Pumas and a draw with the Springboks but suffered a hefty defeat against the Wallabies to finish third.
Last year, the Springboks withdrew from the competition, forcing the remaining sides to play off in a refreshed Tri-Nations, which the All Blacks secured with two wins and a draw from their four matches.
By mixing up the team this week, Foster has also ensured that the All Blacks will enter their two upcoming (and potentially competition-deciding) matches with the Springboks with a full contingent of relatively fresh players – which should bode well for the showdowns with the world champions.
“You don’t also want to run out of steam in the last couple of matches of a five-test block,” Foster said. “It’s about balancing the team, the performance, and making sure that we’ve got the energy to be explosive out on the park in all five test matches. I guess it’s the art of selection.
“Some of these changes have been flagged for quite a while but overall, we’re happy. It’s part of the challenge of being an All Black. You’ve got to prepare to play and whoever puts on that jersey, we’ve still got to be responsible for the performance.
“A few changes, people get pretty excited about that and start to worry [about] the performance levels but if we can perform at the level we really want then we know as a group that we’re really taking the strides forward that we want.”
Comments on RugbyPass
I agree ..come on keyboard warriors and journalists looking for a cheap win ….. only 2 mins to go 12 points down …this DID NOT decide the game and beside JM was hit after the whistle and in response it was a pat on the back of the head …harmless ….watch soccer if this is your issue
4 Go to commentsRest is for namby pamby sissies, I see. True men should overcome their trifling injuries by playing week in, week out. Bidwell’s stance reminds me of a Jon Gadsby character from the 70s, a rugby captain giving an after-match speech: “It was a very physical contest. One of our players caught a boot on the back of his head in a ruck, and he died, actually. But to his credit, he played on.”
1 Go to commentsI still see nothing in Sotutus play that hes changed his upright running style that failed so many times against decent international defences like the french. Other than that… Iose? Well you have covered his limitations well. If Sititi had been playing the the season… Jacobson? Grace?…Neither shout pick me. So Ardie it is.
1 Go to commentsThere isn’t one element you mentioned there that every top class or successful team gets up to. The great All blacks sides used to play on the ‘fringes or edge’ but it was essentially saying they were doing something illegal or borderline to gain dominance. The fine margins at the top are minute between the top sides. La Rochelle, the crusaders, Saracens, Toulon etc etc…..have all been accused. Get over it, the comment comes across as salty and naive. Northampton as well as they played to get back into the match were thoroughly beaten and controlled for 60 minutes and Leinster have only themselves to blame for kicking it away and hence losing control of the match and being nearly the architects of their own downfall.
2 Go to commentsThere is some talent coming thru thats for sure. The 10 looks special to me. Rico Simpson is a name to look for in the future.
1 Go to commentsI think this quiet honestly is just an innocent misunderstanding by someone who is pig sh*t stupid. Eben is a fine player but by christ, if he can’t understand or get what the Irish players were trying to say to him after the match…..well i hope he has someone looking after his finances, career and is reading the fine print for him, cause life after rugby may be quite difficult for the vacuous echo chamber.
27 Go to commentsIt could be Doris' day!
3 Go to commentsThe whole thing has blown up because Eben’s words have clearly struck a nerve in Ireland. Otherwise they would just laugh it off. I think some former Irish players, commentators and some Irish fans know deep down this Ireland team started to believe its own press and that a certain amount of arrogance had started to creep in during the World Cup. The topic was actually brought up by Irish pundits on Off the Ball recently. It’s fine to be arrogant if you can back it up. Ireland didn’t.
27 Go to comments‘The Irish are good people'. Why is Goode praising a people who hate his own? Wet wipe.
27 Go to commentsLa mejor final que se puede ver en el emisferio norte.
1 Go to commentsA lot of cope from south africans in the comments. Etzebeth is a liar and a hypocrite; you don’t have to defend him!
27 Go to commentsHe got big and really slow for a flyhalf…not sure he’s relevant in a bok conversation anymore
4 Go to commentsBest tourney team vs best team in the regular season for 3 games in RSA - talk is cheap, let’s see what’s what on the tour
27 Go to commentsOne overlooked statistic from their 2016 winning season is the Huricanes are still the only team in Super rugby history not to concede a try during the playoff rounds.
4 Go to commentsThanks for the article, Nick. The Nienaber blitz D does ask a lot of its scrumhalf. I have been watching JGP on D and he often looks like he has mastered what Nienaber asks for better than Faf de Klerk and Cobus Reinach! 🤣 Impressive season by JGP if I must make an understatement.
22 Go to commentsOkay last one. I promise. I think it’s despicable for Andy Goode to suggest that Eben can’t count to 12. To be fair he only had to count to 8 - the number of Irishmen who DIDN’T say that. Less the 3 kiwis of course. 23 - 12 - 3 = 8. See Joe. I can do maffs.
27 Go to commentsCheers, Nick! How do you see the Reds’ Jock Campbell’s play this year? Not as strong a carrier as Andrew Kellaway or Tom Wright, but does avoid errors. Do you see Joe Schmidt as wanting safety first at 15 or a try-assisting counterattacker?
91 Go to commentsI’m sure this was all just a big misunderstanding. Irishmen and Afrikaaners conversing in a noisey stadium. Not easy to get the right messages across. A minefield.
27 Go to commentsSay what you will about Andy Goode. But he is right about one thing… I’m not sure what that one thing is exactly… but I’m willing to hear him out.
27 Go to commentsAnother article to bait and trigger Irish fans. This must stop.
27 Go to comments