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What was the first thing that Steve Hansen did after the All Blacks' loss sunk in?
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The morning after the night before and the All Blacks are struggling to suppress raw emotions attached to their World Cup semifinal defeat.
At the end of their 19-7 loss to England in Yokohama, many players slumped to the turf with disappointment and dread.
Players were laid out across the field, many not knowing how to react.
Steve Hansen eventually wandered off to the side of the field where he made a phone call.
He then spoke with former All Blacks coach Graham Henry and centre Conrad Smith.
Asked today who he called, Hansen needed to compose himself to prevent an emotional response that would lead television bulletins for days to come.
“I rang my wife,” Hansen said, pausing to take a sip of water in order to give himself a moment to suppress the overwhelming sadness. “And we had a bit of a chat.
“I then talked to Ted [Henry] and Conrad about ’07 and we mentioned the fact it’s no different, the same gutting feeling.
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“Then Ted and I talked about how well George Ford had played. Ted had quite a few comments and I did a bit of listening, trying to do a bit of learning, and then you just move on don’t you?
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“Is it hard to stomach? Course it is. It’s gut-wrenching because we wanted to win the thing but so did they. Life’s not fair so when would sport be fair. You don’t always get the thing you want. And when you don’t you’ve got to measure your character on how you deal with that.
“What comes out of a tournament like this, and it’s unique because it’s knockout and you don’t get a second chance, so the pain isn’t alleviated by playing another test next week.
“Whoever we play next week won’t alleviate the pain that we haven’t achieved what we wanted to which was come here and win it. You’ve got to bank that and sit back and learn the lessons.
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“We’ll do that when the tournament finishes, about what we could have done better.”
One man doesn't make a team, but the elusive Damian McKenzie could have made a big difference for the @AllBlacks against @EnglandRugby, writes @TomVinicombe. https://t.co/KBAHH0qHsN #RWC2019 #ENGvNZL
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 27, 2019
All Blacks captain Kieran Read experienced a similar moment at last night’s post-match press conference when asked about whether his men turned up with the right attitude.
Today the scar above Read’s right eye began to heal but those on the inside were again laid bare as he spoke with a lump in his throat while reflecting on the devastating result that forces him to contest a third and fourth playoff in his final test.
“It’s pretty empty. It’s not what we came here for, that’s the reality of it. It’s not going to define us as a group or who we are,” he said.
“There’s no two ways around it that you’re really gutted but I’m sure there’s a lot of people in that same boat with us and going through those emotions. We feel for them as well.
Probably the hardest presser he's ever had to give #AllBlacks #WALvRSA #RWC2019 #englandrugby https://t.co/iXfFUV6cB4
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 26, 2019
“As the leader, you look at ways you could have done things differently but that’s all hindsight. It’s not going to affect your emotions right now. It’s not going to change the fact we lost. I’m proud of the effort and character.”
Read was particularly emotional when he arrived back at the team hotel.
“The fact it was my birthday so to get back to the hotel and there were cards from my kids waiting for me. That puts things in perspective. It’s a rugby game. People care, we care, so you enjoy moments. For me, I’m a dad and first and foremost that’s the thing I want to be remembered by.”
This article originally appeared on nzherald.co.nz and is republished with permission.
All Blacks fans weren’t quite as shocked as Steve Hansen after their side’s loss to England:
Comments on RugbyPass
To be fair it was nowhere bear the Leinster first team (for which, btw, Leinster copped nothing like the outrage that Jake White did for sending a rotated team to the UK). But it’s fun to watch the Stormers doing their thing. They are attracting big, diverse crowds of young fans, and deservedly so. Great to see.
1 Go to commentsIt might be legal but he’s sailing pretty close to the wind. Not a lot needs to go wrong for Finau to end up in the bin. Was it late? Not quite, but borderline. High? A couple of CM within the laws, no room for error with that one. Did he wrap the arms? There was a token effort to wrap one arm, the intent was clearly to hit with the shoulder. So yeah, it’s legal, just. But as we all know, a very slight change in the dynamics could easily have him seeing red. Hopefully not when it really matters.
4 Go to commentsCan we also show some love for Tane Edmed’s fantastic draw and pass? Put his body on the line and committed the defender before letting go of that pass. Flawless skill.
4 Go to commentsYou forget this is Rassie Erasmus who is still holding the Springbok keys. Even with Felix Jones orchestrating a really tight RWC SF last year. It still wasn't enough to get England past their particular Springbok Monkey in world cups. The reason is FJ was going off of what they did in 2019 not necessarily adapting to current Springboks. So yes, Australia can get passed England because let's be honest, England have a one track strategy, Springboks do not. Even with rush defense I wouldn't be surprised if Rassie continually tweaks it. Also bear in mind Rassie is happy to sacrifice a few mid year and inter World Cup matches to pin point how opposition plays and how to again tweak strategies to get his Springboks in peak performance for the next World Cup. As much as most teams like to win games in front of them and try to win everything, Rassie always makes sure to learn and train for the greatest showdown International Rugby has to offer. Tbh, most people remember World Cup wins and ignore intermediate losses as a result but will remember also WC losses, Ireland, even if they won games in the interim. So even if games are won against the Springboks, it's likely Rassie is just getting a feel for how opposition is moving and adapt accordingly…in time. For Rassie, a loss is never a loss because he uses it as a chance to learn and improve. Sometimes during a game, again like the England match in last year's Semi Final.
7 Go to commentsDanny don't care. He pretends to care but he don't. He says all this stuff to justify his reasoning but no one can claim that legitimately. He knew exactly what he was doing and wondered if his old team mate would overlook it, which he did. Ref has got to be sidelined or properly trained. It's one thing for refs to move up the ranks but if it was me I would require refs to either have played in different clubs or not at all having the temptation to bias in high stakes games like this. This has got to be stamped out. But then again World Rugby is so destroying the game of rugby in an attempt to be more “safe” and “concussion free”. What they are doing is making it more infuriating for the fans and more difficult for the refs to officiate evenly and consistently. It's fast become Australian Rules football. If guys don't want concussions, they should have played chess. Stop complaining you oldies of the game. When they played the game was vastly heavier hitting than it is now but of course they can't see that.
2 Go to commentsJa, why do Bulls get flack for not bringing their best but Leinster never bring their best and it goes “unnoticed”?
3 Go to commentsIt’ll be very interesting to see how Razor’s AB’s handle the new England rush D. It’s basically the Bok recipe they copied, so if England goes well then we know most likely the Boks will go well too. If England cops a hiding then we’ll have to study and adapt.
7 Go to commentsTypical trait of an australian is to moan. Goes well with there lack of humbleness as evident by the Reds bench on the weekend.
4 Go to commentsSBW’s bro’town commentary and lazy default to hyperbole should be ignored, a technical analyst he is not. Sotutu is a good player when games get goosey loosey, high skill set that fans of Zinzan recall with starry eyes. But you need power and mongrel at no8 in the Test arena and Sotutu gets found wanting there, much like Akira Ioane. No8’s like Zinzan and Ardie have bucketloads of mongrel and power and tenacity which allow the skill sets to flourish.
11 Go to commentsAn inside pass to attacker on the angle can make a drift defence look lead footed. Relies on fleet footed forward/s to get across from the breakdown. An argument for the smaller faster 7 perhaps?
7 Go to commentsSensational tackle. The reds one was late and rightly penalised. The other two were simultaneous with the pass. If nitpicking TMOs can’t find fault there clearly isn’t any.
4 Go to commentsBrumbies fully deserved their win on the back of their physicality and desire to control the ball. Xavier Numia, Asafo Aumua and Tyrel Lomax should be the ABs starting front row when we start our test schedule. They have “come of age” and have bested all they have faced as well as been dominant with ball in hand in making the gainline. With De Groot, Tamaiti Williams and Fletcher Newell backed up by Taukei'aho and Cody Taylor there's not an international front row that can trouble us. Can't wait to face the Boks over there, won't be no one point game this time.
7 Go to commentsKinda strange that he wasn’t with a premiership team or a higher level of rugby? Start playing late or something? With that kind of size and athleticism you’d think someone would have picked him up?
2 Go to commentsShows how much attitude matters. Last week the Brumbies got done, this week they dominated the tournament leaders, who were likely thinking they could cruise to victory.
7 Go to commentsA 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.
7 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.
11 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.
7 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
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