Trying times as world record looms large
Once a fortnight All Blacks coach Steve Hansen scrolls through the address index on his phone to find the digits belonging to England counterpart Eddie Jones.
Sometimes they chat, on other occasions they communicate via text messages.
Clearly the men get along, even if Hansen admits Jones ‘‘isn’t everyone’s cup of tea’’.
This goes some way to explaining the unexpected turn of events when Hansen spoke to media in London yesterday.
The highly anticipated test between the All Blacks and England at Twickenham might be just days away, it will be the first time the two countries have squared off since 2014, but rather than needle his rival ahead of the blockbuster game Hansen elected to have a flick at Jones’s critics instead.
Although England has acquired consecutive wins over South Africa, Jones’ methods continue to be questioned. The five consecutive defeats that preceded those successes haven’t been forgotten.
‘‘They only people that don’t understand what it’s like to be a head coach of an international team are the people have never been one,’’ Hansen said.
‘‘There is a lot of pressure there all the time, whether you are winning or losing. It’s just in a different wrapper.’’
Jones made a dream start after replacing Stuart Lancaster following England’s shambolic World Cup campaign in 2015, winning 25 of the first 26 tests in charge. Then came the defeats, followed by a turnover in support staff, and questions about whether Jones really was the right man for the job.
The expectations are always high for those running the big tier-one test teams, explained
Aworld record is in the offing for the All Blacks in their test match against England at Twickenham on Sunday. Such has been their constantly threatening strikes this year, New Zealand are on the cusp of creating a new mark (13) for the most consecutive test matches in which a team has scored four or more tries.
While it’s a figure that doesn’t hold any significant value aside from being bonus-point material in some tournaments – such as the World Cup since 2003, the Six Hansen. It’s not an industry for the meek.
‘‘Eddie, more than anybody, understands that. So he’s not too bothered by it. The people who Nations since 2017 and formerly the Rugby Championship until the ‘three more than your opponents’ rule came in in 2016 – the four-try feat is at least considered a successful attacking day at the office.
‘‘But, first and foremost, you have to have some sort of relationship that allows you to get on with each other. You don’t ring up people you don’t like, just because they are doing the same job as you.
‘‘The bottom line is we talk and our wives talk. And that’s not surprising. As I said I think he’s a good bloke.’’
After England beat South Africa 12-11 at Twickenham last weekend, Jones hardly lacked confidence when he talked up his team’s chances of beating the All Blacks. Yet he would find few people to back his team, given that scratchy win and its recent form.
Sending an advance party of 23 top All Blacks to London to recover from jet lag and prepare for this upcoming test, while a second-string side played Japan in Tokyo, means Hansen will able to select players who, unlike England, aren’t nursing battered bodies.
The All Blacks are favoured to beat England, no doubt about it.
Yet Hansen wasn’t surprised Jones was so bullish in the wake of the triumph over the Springboks.
‘‘No. It’s his job to be confident. You would expect him to be confident. He’s a passionate man, Eddie. I have got a lot of time for him, a lot of respect for him. He’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I think he’s a good man.’’
Following the romp over Japan last Saturday, the All Blacks have equalled their own best streak, achieved in the first 12 of their 14 tests in 2016 before they only managed three in each the last two games of that season, against Ireland and France.
This current run began in the final match of 2017, with five tries in the win over Wales in Cardiff.
New Zealand then started this year with a 3-0 series sweep of France, scoring eight in the first test in Auckland and seven in the last in Dunedin, and, despite a wobbly showing in Wellington in between, they still managed to cross four times in that one.
There was then four successive games with six tries scored – against Australia in Sydney and Auckland, against Argentina in Nelson, and in the loss to South Africa in Wellington.
After five tries against the friend of mine could not believe what he was seeing.
There seems no end in sight to the slaughter in Europe. New Zealand’s care for its players is decades ahead of England’s and Steve Hansen is still concerned that they are playing too much rugby. They are. But in Europe the situation is catastrophic.
I understand players from poor Pacific families going over for the money, but it is literally blood money. One day I hope some of the people in charge of club rugby in Europe face a class action because their treatment of the players is negligent. They play them until they break. Then they put them out there again before they are fully mended.
Do you remember the
‘‘He’s a passionate man, Eddie. I have got a lot of time for him, a lot of respect for him. He’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I think he’s a good man.’’
Steve Hansen, above, on Eddie Jones, below
Pumas in Buenos Aires the streak was set to end against the Springboks in Pretoria, but two last-gasp scores made for a fourtry tally, then there was five against the Wallabies in Yokohama and 10 put on the Brave Blossoms in Tokyo.
It shows how consistently dangerous the men in black are, often in these games operating with less than an equal share of possession. The willingness to attack from anywhere is unmistakable, while penalty goals continue to become a thing of the past.
The coaches – attack specialist Ian Foster in particular – must take some praise, because it’s a marked