Tri Nations Game 6 - Wallabies vs All Blacks - Saturday 27 August 2011 - 3N2011

[AkRiD]

Just as a matter of interest, I noticed this article on Fox Sports

http://www.foxsports.com.au/rugby/w...-rugby-world-cup/story-e6frf55l-1226124926057

Apparently it was the third most-watched program ever on subscription television.

Growing interest in the Wallabies? OR Just a lot of Kiwis?

 

[Lee Grant]

We played badly in that first half. Dropped balls, missed tackles, sloppy ball at the back of rucks, that is playing badly. They looked clueless. As I say, it's partly down to how well and how hard you guys played but we were having a mare.

It was like the first half at Eden Park, in reverse.

 

[Blob]

We played badly in that first half. Dropped balls, missed tackles, sloppy ball at the back of rucks, that is playing badly. They looked clueless. As I say, it's partly down to how well and how hard you guys played but we were having a mare.

I think what I'm getting from the Aussies is that the All Blacks never play badly. And they never play badly when they lose. Becuase - and I think this is the theme - if the All Blacks played badly it means that the winners... didn't really win? Nup, I can't work out why it's so offensive that the All Blacks might have played badly.

As you say, quite reasonably, some of the bad All Black play was due to great Wallaby pressure. Some of the bad All Black play, and I'm thinkign primarily of the poor response to the Wallaby pressure, was down to the All Blacks themselves. They can turn pressure. They've done it before and they'll do it again. They didn't in that game. They played poorly. It doesn't detract from the win.

 

[Jnor]

I thought the ABs definitely did turn pressure with that first 20 minutes of the second half. When we went to oranges I was feeling more nervous than if the scores were reversed and there was no way we'd done enough to shut the ABs out completely.

The ability to change gameplan and be murderously effective at it is the biggest reason I think the ABs are well and truly still favourites for the WC. I wish we could do that when things aren't going right, even if it takes a big boot up the arse at half time.