[ad_1]
The All Blacks know exactly what’s to come Saturday night at ANZ Stadium. Wallabies do too, actually. There are no secrets when they have just hit each other during 160 minutes of rugby testing and are about to get dirty and dirty for the third time in four weeks.
No secrets. But a lot of knowledge. In life, familiarity can breed contempt, but in sport it turns into a tremendous arm wrestling, which is exactly what All Blacks captain Sam Cane expects when he meets Dave Rennie’s Wallabies at the third of four consecutive encounters between the two trans. Tasmania rivals.
Modern rugby rarely offers series like this. In the best case, two teams can see each other twice in a row, then, just as they have been raised, they tend to move towards other opponents and the process of feeling out begins again.
Hannah Peters / Getty Images
Sam Cane, All Blacks skipper: “We’re confident we can force them to make a lot of tackles and hopefully lose a few too.”
But not this year, with the great shadow of Covid above all. The All Blacks and Wallabies have just played back-to-back Bledisloes in New Zealand (a tight 16-16 draw in Wellington, followed by a resounding 27-7 New Zealand rebound in Auckland). Now they do the same on the other side of the ditch, closing it in Brisbane next Saturday night.
READ MORE:
* All Blacks vs Australia: Ian Foster has done his homework in the new Wallabies No. 10
* All Blacks v Australia: Jack Goodhue will face his old teammate in Sydney
* All Blacks v Australia: Richie Mo’unga’s strategy to overcome debate No. 10
* All Blacks vs Wallabies: Ian Foster, Sam Cane enjoys the rare opportunity to lock up Bledisloe on Australian soil
“He’s quite unique,” Cane said before his captaincy run on Friday. “It was nice to have the week without rugby last week. It seems that we have entered and rebooted now.
“[But] It’s the adjustments you’ll make from week to week, the improvements you can make to your game, the improvements your opponent can make, and it’s practically a battle of who can improve faster.
WOOD / AARON’S STUFF
The All Blacks team will play Australia in Sydney for Game 3 of the Bledisloe Cup.
“Obviously the first one was pretty tight. I thought we were much better in that second game and the Australians will probably admit they weren’t as sharp. Everything will be at stake tomorrow. “
When the sport unfolds in a series like this quartet of Bledisloes, the winner is usually the team that makes the best adjustments. It was the All Blacks in Auckland when they found their way back to the lead and forced the Wallabies to hit an incredible 40 missed tackles.
But the New Zealanders will have to make more adjustments this week as Rennie’s men, even with rookies at 10 and 12, make the necessary defensive adjustments. They will be better.
Mark Baker / AP
Sam Cane and the All Blacks enjoyed a rebound performance at Eden Park in Bledisloe II.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve been practicing a little tackle,” Cane observed with a wry smile. “Your defense has to be pretty good to win test matches. We remain confident that if we can hold onto the ball we can force them to make a lot of tackles and hopefully miss a few as well. Test rugby is about building pressure, with and without the ball. “
In Auckland, a much more urgent, physical and competent New Zealand team laid some early foundations, then eliminated their opponents with a withering third quarter that saw them extend their lead from 10-7 at halftime to 27-7 in an instant. Game over.
But this is a new week, a new country and an opponent who would have sweated a lot from their mistakes in Auckland.
“Our record in Australia is not as good as it is in New Zealand,” Cane noted of a line in Australian form that is 3-3 in his last six and has taken just six wins in 12 events since 2011. “The Australian in Australian is Hard. In my time at the All Blacks it’s always been testing in Australia first, so when it comes to Bledisloe’s crucial games, they’ve been on New Zealand soil. The shoe is on the other foot this weekend and we are excited about that challenge. “
Plus, the All Blacks learned a few things about their own game last week at Eden Park, Cane added.
“The first 40 were a real arm wrestling, a typical test match … then we had a 15-20 minute period right after halftime where we pretty much got our jobs done, we had no mistakes and we executed. Then the last 20 we didn’t get things done like we did in the previous 20.
“What I learned was how good we can be when we do those things well and our challenge is to be able to execute those things under pressure most of the time.”
Phil Walter / Getty Images
Captain Sam Cane picked up a rare ‘meatloaf’ when the All Blacks came home 27-7 at Bledisloe II.
Ian Foster has talked about Eden Park being the “line in the sand.” Cane agreed. Now it was about raising that performance bar, he thought.
Clearly, the All Blacks will be delighted with their chances of unsettling Wallabies rookies Noah Lolesio and Irae Simone, at 10 and 12 respectively. Cane, however, wearily tread on that subject.
“They are quality young footballers and most of the people who make their debut have quite good games because it is the fulfillment of a dream … the best way to unsettle them would be like a forward squad interrupting their ball on the set piece and leaving the line and taking away your time and space. “
The All Blacks, of course, have their own first-time starter in Hoskins Sotutu at No. 8 (though he has had two replacement cameos). Cane has been impressed by his new loosie partner.
“He is a very smart player and someone who sees the game very well. In his stints off the bench, his work rate has been huge, he has made many tackles and he has recovered. It has adapted perfectly and is a great opportunity for Hos. “
Cane was asked about his team lifting the mighty Bledisloe on Saturday night on Australian soil for the first time in 11 years. That has not been in your thoughts this week. This has: “We know it’s going to be a big challenge and we’re going to have to dig quite deep to get there.”
Let the adjustments develop.
