New Zealand will play Ireland in Dublin this weekend as the Grand Slam winners face off against the two-time defending world champions at the Aviva Stadium.
The All Blacks prevailed the last time they came to Dublin with a 21-9 win back in 2016 and New Zealand head coach Steve Hansen said at his press conference in Blanchardstown on Sunday that this match will ultimately determine which side is the best team in world rugby.
The All Blacks enter the match as six-point favourites with bookmakers after winning yet another Rugby Championship where they scored an average of 37 points per game.
New Zealand edged out England by a single point in a 16-15 win at Twickenham last weekend and former Ireland captain Brian O’Driscoll has said that Ireland will back their defence against the All Blacks while former New Zealand captain and current Auckland Blues head coach Tana Umaga believes that the game will ultimately be contested in the air and during broken play.
“We want to test the edge of all the defences that we play against,” said Umaga ahead of the Guinness Series clash.
“One of our strengths is to get around on the outside and really test teams there. We’ve probably developed more now where if it hasn’t worked after a couple of phases, rather than trying to make it work after five or six and not give up position or the ball because of all that pressure that we know the Irish will bring defensively and physically, and I think they realise now that we’ve got to turn that around.
“We’ve got to do what they’re doing to us. It’s really around the execution of the kicking game that is going to be the difference, the contestables being right on the money so we can get up and relieve that pressure by taking that ball and get us into those opportunities.
“From that pressure, the mistakes that happen, that’s when I think teams pounce. That’s what we’re working off now. Everyone is working off errors. Trying to create pressure by being physical and swarming in their defence. As soon as that happens it’s structure from the unstructured.
“There is certain structure and the individual gets to express themselves – like a Beauden Barrett, a Ben Smith, Rieko Ioane – when they get that ball in space that’s when we’re looking for a one-on-one opportunities with someone that is isolated, hopefully a tight forward, that you’re looking for standing in the wrong place and then we can see those cues straight away and go to that space.
“You’re trying to take advantage of that unstructured before they get structured. With the Irish, and with the All Blacks, every team is trying to get structured as soon as we can but then it’s just a race.”
New Zealand’s all-time leading try scorer Doug Howlett has previously said that the key to the All Blacks success in attack is four or five players all seeing the same thing and identifying the same weakness in the opposition defence.
O’Driscoll added that the key to preventing the All Blacks from going wide is by trying to slow and disrupt their ball at the ruck and that the game will be a huge test for Ireland given that a lot of the tries that they have conceded have generally come through the wider channels.
“It’s a number of things and what happens at the ruck has such a bearing on quality and speed of ball,” said O’Driscoll.
“That has a knock on effect to how deep the first-receiver has to take it versus defensive lines on their heels versus on their toes so the speed of ruck ball is everything in our game.
“The quality of that clear-out and ball presentation – that’s why there is such a focus on the ball carrier – and why there is very little squeeze ball between the legs anymore. It’s about tackle and recoil to make sure you get back and give the two ruckers a target to clear over. The nine is there then to clear away immediately.
“I think the great thing for Ireland is our Achilles heel has been our wide defence. Getting narrow. When we’ve conceded tries it’s rarely been through the guts. It’s been in the wide extremities.”
“Against a decent passing team like New Zealand,” he added, “along with some really good athletes out in those wide channels, we’re going to be tested. Our scramble is going to be tested. You won’t be able to have line-speed every time.
“When you do have to soften up you’re making sure that you are well connected and that you use that touchline as a defender because you will get exploited against the better sides. They just know how to take advantage of their opportunities and take advantage of those mismatches and get their big ball players with time and space.
“If you do that against the All Blacks in particular you’re going to be struggling.”
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