Rugby: Wallabies braces for All Blacks reaction after draw in opening round of Bledisloe Cup

The Wallabies came close to achieving a famous victory over the All Blacks last weekend. Now, they are preparing for the backlash.

The teams will meet again in Auckland on Sunday at Eden Park, a venue where the Wallabies have not beaten their New Zealand counterparts since 1986, for the second round of the Bledisloe Cup, now shaping up to be a crucial one with the victor moving into a win to lift the cup.

In recent years, the All Blacks have thrived playing at Eden Park, especially after a less than impressive performance.

In 2014, when the teams tied in Sydney, the All Blacks achieved a 51-20 victory at Eden Park the following week. When Australia beat the All Blacks 27-19 in Sydney in 2015, they were beaten 41-13 the following week in Auckland. Last year, when the Wallabies went 47-26 in Perth, the All Blacks responded with a 36-0 victory in Auckland seven days later.

After last weekend’s draw, Wallabies running back Nic White said he expected the All Blacks to rise to another level Sunday.

“I’m not sure how much it has to do with the field and how much it has to do with the outcome,” White said.

“I don’t think it matters where we face them this week, there will be a reaction from them. The All Blacks have always reacted after a draw, a loss or a performance that they don’t think is very good.

“But we’re talking about our reaction this week. There are a lot of guys who haven’t played at Eden Park before; there are a lot of guys in this group who haven’t played the All Blacks before. This is a new group and we’re trying to talk about the reaction we want to get from a game on the weekend that we think we might have had.

“We were pretty wrecked in the sheds after that game. That game was there for the taking, and we didn’t take it.”

While both sides are going through a period of adjustment with new coaches taking the helm, last weekend’s result came as a surprise to many given the big changes made to the Wallabies regime.

He had the great David Campese of Wallabies suggest in an interview with Stuff that the All Blacks had “lost their aura” as the most dominant force in world rugby.

White asked to disagree and said that the All Blacks are still a very good team and have shown it for a long time.

“I don’t think they (have lost their aura). Do I believe in us and that we can take it away? Yes, but that’s not a reflection of them at all; it’s a reflection of us and where we’re going.”

White had a huge influence on the Wallabies’ performance in Wellington, with his vision and running game since the breakdown causing problems for the All Blacks who continued to give him room to move.

It allowed the Wallabies to advance in attack and test the All Blacks’ defense throughout the contest, but it is not an area in which White hopes he can excel this weekend.

“I’ll take each breakdown on its merits, but it certainly won’t surprise me if they step out of line and try to get me out of the game.”