Tana Umaga: 'You can definitely see the stamp of Les Kiss on this Wallabies side'

The All Blacks are looking forward to facing a familiar foe with a similar attacking mindset when the Bledisloe Cup kicks off in Auckland this weekend, but their rivals from across the ditch have some new quirks to their game that demand defensive adjustments.

The Kiwis aren’t the only side introducing a new head coach’s game plan this year, with Les Kiss the new kid on the Wallabies’ block. Wins over Japan, Argentina and South Africa have got Kiss’ tenure off to a flying start just one year out from a home Rugby World Cup, and there would be no better way to affirm that momentum than not only ending a more than two-decade-long Bledisloe Cup drought, but also New Zealand’s three-decade-long unbeaten run at Eden Park.

The changes Kiss has made have borne fruit, and All Blacks defence coach Tana Umaga was quick to put his finger on exactly where they’ve come when speaking with media after training on Tuesday.

“I think they’re playing with a lot more width, and having numbers across the field,” he said. “You can definitely see the stamp of Les Kiss on this Wallabies side, and you’ve got to think that that’s a positive with the way they’ve been playing. So, we’ve got to adjust to that and make sure that we have the answers to the questions that they’ll pose to us.”

The former All Black captain went on to explain how “Australia bring a different set of issues” compared to the opponents his side have faced thus far in 2026.

“They’ve got a mindset like us; they want to play, and that’s great. I’m sure they would have learned and seen some things from South Africa, when we struggled, so we’ve got to make sure we look after ourselves and control what we can control.

“Also, when we do get the opportunities, we make the most of those and finish those.”

New Zealand won’t be duped into over-reacting to the shortcomings exposed by the Springboks, keeping the positives from the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series defeat squarely in view as they prepare to defend another style of rugby.

Still, Umaga acknowledged his team have some growing to do within their structures, saying: “There’s definitely some tweaking going on.

“If we keep doing the same thing, then we’re going to get beaten in the same areas. So we’ve definitely worked on that; we’ve looked at ourselves hard around those areas. And hopefully those tweaks, curing where South Africa came at us, but also understanding what the Wallabies bring and making sure we can cater to that as well.

“We only got in on Sunday, so we’ve got to be mindful of how much you can change in six days; three training runs. For us, there’s not too much; we’ve just got to make sure we sharpen up in certain areas.”