Steve Hansen not showing his hand on Cane/Barrett call, but 'obviously it's strategic'
Largely lost in the outrageous Eddie Jones spying accusations was his attempt to shield England from pressure attached to their Rugby World Cup semifinal. Steve Hansen had to wait a couple of days for his crack back but when his chance arrived, the All Blacks coach did not miss the mark in turning the tables on England.
In many ways Hansen’s surprise tactical selection of Scott Barrett at blindside flanker is far more important than any utterance either coach will make this week.
Selecting a third versatile, mobile, lock at No 6 allows the All Blacks to target England’s lineout, just as they did so successfully in the second half of their victory at Twickenham last November.
This time, in theory, the tactic should trouble England more with shorter loose forwards Tom Curry and Sam Underhill compromising their jumping options.
The All Blacks can then unleash Sam Cane’s hard hitting from the bench when England’s pack perhaps begins to tire and up the tempo further through Dane Coles. With Sonny Bill Williams and Patrick Tuipulotu on the bench, they also won’t lack physical impact.
“I’m not going to go into too much depth about that because otherwise I’ll give Eddie information he’ll have to work out pretty quickly himself. Obviously it’s strategic,” Hansen said of the Barrett change. “Sam Cane is playing lovely rugby. However we’ve made some decisions around what we want to do and how we want to play and we’ve made that change because of it.”
As for the pre-match off-field sparring, Hansen and All Blacks captain Kieran Read both laughed off Jones’ spying claims to effectively render them irrelevant. Hansen even revealed he and Jones continue to exchange text messages.
“It’s only mind games if you buy into it and we’re not buying into it. It’s allowed us to have a good laugh. I’m chuckling away, I get a text ‘how you going Steve, pretty good thanks Eddie’. He’s laughing, I’m laughing.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/B35XN4HggDD/
Where Hansen did, however, accept the verbal challenge was by tackling Jones’ assertion that no one expects England to win and they can, therefore, waltz into Yokohama Stadium as if this is any old school ball.
Hansen knows the grand arena does funny things to even the best players who have not experienced it, and he wasn’t letting Jones or England scurry away that easy.
Jones claimed pressure is chasing the All Blacks down the street while, at the same time, attempting to absolve England of any weight of expectation.
Hansen was having none of it, serving up a not-so-subtle reminder that England failed to progress beyond the pool stages of their last, home World Cup and pointing out Jones had planned for this match since taking on the job.
Steve Hansen's made a change to the @AllBlacks – to counter the big English pack, perhaps? https://t.co/h3ECNWsPA5 #RWC2019 #ENGvNZL #AllBlacks
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 24, 2019
“I’ve talked about pressure ever since I’ve been an All Blacks coach because we’re under pressure all the time. Early in our history we ran away from it so it was chasing us down the street but these days we’ve had to acknowledge it’s there. We’re expected to win every game.
“So, yep, there is pressure. But it would be very naïve to think that’s there’s not pressure on both sides.
“When you can publicly acknowledge that it’s on you then there’s awareness. That same pressure is running down the same street he is on. He’s trying to take pressure off his own side by trying to get everyone to talk to us about it. Again, smart move, but we’re not buying into it.
“We know we’re under pressure. We don’t need Eddie to tell us that.
. @EnglandRugby have three non-negotiables if they are to beat the All Blacks on Saturday
– writes @alexshawsport ??? #rwc https://t.co/4kv2QCDbHE
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 23, 2019
“He needs to work out what England is going to do with the pressure they’re under. They’ll have memories about a tournament four years ago that didn’t go that good so they’ll be under immense pressure themselves.
“To say that they’ve got nothing to lose, Eddie doesn’t believe that either. They’ve got a whole four years work resulting on one outcome so they get the opportunity to go and play another game.
“They’ve built themselves up for four years to do this job. How you deal with it in the moment will be crucial.”
Jones may get the first and last laugh in the verbal jousting but whatever spin his puts on it, Hansen has ensured England now face exactly the same scrutiny.
This article first appeared on nzherald.co.nz and is republished with permission.
Sonny Bill Williams could be making one of his final two appearances for the All Blacks this weekend:
Comments on RugbyPass
A Turtle has more pace and leg drive than Owen Franks, so it’s a good thing he only had to run 90 metres for that try.
2 Go to commentsOh Tamati Tua was in the vastly over-rated Leon MacDonalds Blues system? Well, no wonder he was wasted, much like Emoni Narawa and Jacob Ratumaitavuki-Kneepkens under MacDonald. now look at them. Good thing Tua isn’t eligible, the Aussies latch on to any player who isn’t tied down.
2 Go to commentsMark Telea is a lot of things, but a defensive juggernaut has never been one of them. There will be far bigger tests in that regard for the youngster.
10 Go to commentsLove and respect to Fiji but not a chance outside of 7s
4 Go to commentsGood summation Ned. Agree the Canes were out-muscled for once (except at the scrum!) by a focused Brumbies outfit. Tua deserves consideration for higher honors after the way he humbled Jordie and the Canes defense. Thankfully, his lack of eligibility for Oz keeps him from Joe’s plans. While I also agree the injuries affected the Canes performance, some players seemed to lack focus and intensity for this match. Perhaps after the Blues demolished the Brumbies, they thought it was going to be easy? A good reminder that any slip up in preparation can have a big affect on the result. Brumbies deserved that win.
2 Go to commentsKarl Dixon should never have been appointed this fixture, absolute disgrace, He’s not much of a referee anyway, didn't have the balls to send his mate care off
5 Go to commentsBrilliant article! Harry of 8/9
1 Go to comments‘UK athletes' have been in the NFL from the start.
1 Go to commentsIt’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.
23 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.
23 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.
5 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.
5 Go to comments