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The year started with questions surrounding how the All Blacks were going to cope without the experience of several veterans, most of which rank among the best in their position that the world has ever seen. Yet here we are, seven matches in for the men in black, and they’ve barely broken a sweat.
Wales came down to the southern hemisphere as overwhelming underdogs, but they have a team that can push most to the brink. They looked good in patches, but a 14-point loss was as close as they got in three attempts. The last game, once the series was already over, gave Steve Hansen a chance to mix things up as a handful of debutants and rookies took the field to thump Wales 46-6.
Australia hadn’t been impressive against an inspired English side, but there were still hopes the Wallabies, with their European saviours back at the helm, might be able to steer the ship to a victory. Instead, a humiliating 42-8 shellacking was served with a fresh dose of reality that this All Blacks team is another level above.
An intense week of training, preparation and strategizing was supposed to be our return to dominance where the ledger was squared; instead, the All Blacks showed they can dutifully defend Australia’s aimless attack and ignore the Wallabies’ attempts to bully them out of the game, running in an easy 29-9 win.
Argentina was the next nation to chance their hand and came out with the most impressive performance. The scoreboard blew out late, as New Zealand showed that they’re an even stronger beast in the second half with seemingly infinite stamina, but the first half was the first time that the All Blacks had been pushed to the point where Hansen had to change his game plan and bring on fresh legs earlier than planned.
That game proved what I can only assume we all feared. Even with Argentina playing some of the best rugby they’ve produced, busting their guts and giving it their all, exploiting every perceived lapse in defence in the almighty All Blacks armour, they couldn’t go into the break in the lead. An almighty All Blacks attack kept the tries coming left, right and centre, and their near-unbreakable defence barely faltered, culminating in a solid 57-22 win.
It was a fool’s errand to bet against this dynamic team, but when the Springboks pulled into AMI Stadium, there was hope among some that the South Africans would manage to lift for the occasion and take it to the All Blacks. True to form, New Zealand started a little slowly, but pulled away with ease, touching down with four tries in a 20-minute period in the second half to ice any chance of a Springbok comeback.
Now, with two games remaining in the Rugby Championship, the All Blacks have decided to continue developing their youth by rotating some of their players. The never-ending depth of New Zealand means that players like Sam Cane, Jerome Kaino, Malakai Fekitoa, Aaron Smith, Aaron Cruden and Charlie Faumuina are being rested (some through injury) to allow young trailblazers like Damian McKenzie, Elliot Dixon, Liam Squire, Tawera Kerr-Barlow, Lima Sopoaga, Ofa Tu’ungafasi and Anton Lienert-Brown to show what they offer at Test level.
Even with several inexperienced players named in the 23, I can’t imagine this All Blacks side going down easily and it will take a mammoth effort from the Pumas to claim their first ever win against New Zealand.
Furthermore, with the Springboks yet to set the world ablaze and no match against England this year, I can’t see the All Blacks dropping a game in 2016, which would extend their unbeaten run to a record-breaking level, further cementing their status as the undeniable best team in the world.
The All Blacks have six games left to play this year, against Argentina, South Africa, Australia, Italy, Ireland and France. Which of these matches do you think presents the biggest challenge to the All Blacks and with this seemingly open approach to rotation while travelling, are there any other players you’d like to see given a chance by Steve Hansen?
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.