All Blacks need to be ‘better than that’

All Blacks coach Ian Foster said his side had to be better at dealing with setbacks after losing to Ireland on home soil for the first time on Saturday.

Tadhg Beirne of Ireland celebrates
Photo: Photosport

Tadhg Beirne of Ireland celebrates the win.

Two yellow cards and the dismissal of prop Angus Ta’avao with Ireland leading 10-0 after little more than half an hour in Dunedin left New Zealand shorthanded as they chased the game.

“It’s hard… but we’ve just got to be better than that,” Foster said.

“You get test matches where things don’t happen, you don’t get the rub of the green. But we were our own worst enemy in that second half. We’ve got to be better.

“We’ve just got to trust ourselves and trust what we do, and ultimately back your own skill level. That’s something we’ve got to go away and work hard on.”

Foster will come under renewed pressure after New Zealand’s third loss in their last four tests going back to their tour of Europe last November.

“We’ve had a couple of starts that were substandard, which we’re going to have to improve on,” he added.

“Trying to play catch-up with 14 men is never easy against a really well organised defensive team.

All Blacks captain Sam Cane addresses the team.
Photo: Photosport

“But, you know, there was probably an unacceptable amount of errors, in terms of the handling stuff. A lot of that was due to pressure and trying to force things and trying to create space against what Ireland were doing.”

Foster said he was not going to be “grizzling” about the refereeing or the cards and said he hoped Saturday’s experience would benefit some of the younger players heading into the series decider in Wellington next week.

“I think it’s a bit of an eye-opener, particularly for a few newer players,” he said.

“To feel that sort of tension and pressure and trying to force things when you’re a man down.”

Ireland’s Bundee Aki and James Lowe celebrate after the match.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT

Meanwhile, Ireland coach Andy Farrell hailed the courage of his players.

The victory in Dunedin was the first for Ireland in 14 attempts on New Zealand soil going back to 1976 and gave them a fourth win in their last seven matches against the All Blacks.

“It’s a privilege to be here and witness what we just witnessed with the boys going toe-to-toe and being so courageous from minute one,” Farrell said.

“They come over here and know that there is a piece of history for them in their careers. We talk about it to them: ‘Somebody’s going to do it sometime soon and it might as well be you’.

“They keep turning up and breaking their little records and I’m so proud of them. They’ve earned the right for next week to go into a decider.”

The third test will take place in Wellington, where Farrell as defence coach helped to guide the British & Irish Lions to a test victory in 2017.

Farrell was impressed that his team did not lose their focus, especially in the first half when three yellow cards and the dismissal of Ta’avao made for some chaotic moments.

“We know that the All Blacks traditionally come out better in game two, especially here under the roof and we were as courageous as we were last week.

“We came out of the blocks quick and put them under some pressure and scored some tries. The game wasn’t perfect but we were calm, we didn’t get sucked into the allure of the game.

“Them going down to 14 or 13 men, we kept playing the game that was in front of us. Again, it wasn’t perfect, we gave a few penalties away and gave them access but we stayed calm and stayed in the fight.

“We were the ones who played for 80 minutes this week.”

– Reuters