- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
New Zealand stand supreme atop the fiery volcano of world rugby and don’t look likely to slip into the fire.
When the World Cup comes next year, the All Blacks’ fans expect their team to engulf the opposition like lava running down the hill.
And why not? They have a firm grip on the 2014 Rugby Championship trophy. However, I will poke my stick into the fire and stir the coals by saying that adding the Webb Ellis Cup to their cabinet will be another matter.
The All Blacks have a superb combination. Their big men give as good as they get in big-five hot box, Richie McCaw is a canny-fingered thief at the breakdown, his loose forwards are adept at stealing ball at the turnover, and they have an inventive backline that can poke holes in a defence.
When a game goes their way and they dominate possession and territory, there’s no stopping them. Steve Hansen can sit comfortably in the stands when the All Blacks are on song; no anxious hopping about the box for him.
But when McCaw and his men were under pressure in their own half, their defence looks no better than the Springboks. The ease with which the South African backline cut through their defence to score a try, courtesy of a clever pass from Handre Pollard, underlines the fact.
It’s uncharitable to suggest that the All Blacks have an overall defensive weakness. We also allowed a try through a defensive lapse when a pinpoint kick found Kieran Read, who slipped a slick pass to McCaw for a try near the touchline.
The All Blacks got home 14-10 in the ‘Cake Tin’ at Wellington and cut themselves another tasty slice of Championship dessert.
The All Blacks won because they dominated possession and territory, with a skilful barrage of backline attacks and up-and-unders. The Springboks’ defence held magnificently for the most part, but it’s difficult to defend against such a varied attack.
If South Africa had managed to play more often in the New Zealand half, there could have been a different outcome. Our continual kick-and-chase tactics didn’t pay off. The All Blacks backs brought the game back into our half and posed a threat for most of the game. You can’t give away over 60 per cent of possession and territory and expect to win.
If Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer opts for a more varied game plan, we have the men to beat the All Blacks. Turn up the heat by getting and staying in their half. South Africa showed what they could do at Ellis Park last year. It was a match they gave themselves a chance of winning.
There wasn’t much of an age difference between the two sides in Wellington: the All Blacks average 27 years, the Springboks 28. But Meyer would be wise to stop hanging on to the old guard from the 2007 World Cup. We need big forwards, but they have to be mobile, too. Some of the older stars just don’t have the pace about the field anymore. Better tactics and a more mobile pack of forwards, who can play 80 minutes, can turn up the heat.
We won’t need ‘Suzie the Indian waitress’, whose meal the All Blacks said upset their stomachs and blamed for defeat in the 1995 World Cup. We’ll have a right recipe and the men for success come next year.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.