‘Bunkered’ NZ need to fire up
Captain adamant team can overcome cancellation setback
All Blacks skipper Kieran Read has stressed the need for his team to step up mentally this week as they prepare for their World Cup quarterfinal.
The challenges have already come for the All Blacks in Japan. They’ve had to cope with a cancelled final pool game against Italy due to a typhoon that also severely limited their training time on Saturday — they spent most of the day in the team hotel playing cards, darts and watching movies.
Now the weather has come right so too should their mental application go up a notch because there are no second chances.
“This is the real deal right now for us,” Read said. “This week if we don’t perform we go home. That’s the reality of it and that’s the exciting part. The reason we’re here is to give ourselves a chance and this is week one in that quest.
“Mentally we’re going to have to be a lot stronger and step up. There are always things that come with finals games. Pressure is one of those and how you deal with that.
“Hopefully the guys get really excited by it.”
At the time of going to print their quarter-final opponents next Saturday could be Ireland, Japan or Scotland.
Read confirmed the All Blacks trained extremely hard on Friday, a day which would have featured a light captain’s run but for the cancelled game in Toyota City.
“It was fun. Today we’ve been in the gym and setting ourself up for the week ahead. I think we’re in pretty good shape.”
He also confirmed he had learned a lot from his previous World Cup successes in 2011 and 2015 as far as the knockout phases go. “The guys that were there in 2015, and a couple of us from 2011, have great fond memories of those experiences.
“We’ve been there and done it but for us it’s stepping up and each week and tournament is so different.
“The opposition is always going to be different as well.”
From a day of little activity to full noise again, the All Blacks are likely to be full of energy after hiding out from Typhoon Hagibis.
“We were probably a little bit removed from some of the pictures we saw here at the hotel,” Read said. “We just bunkered down. It was certainly interesting watching through the window what was going on. We just tried to keep ourselves safe. We feel for the Japanese people and those affected because it was pretty serious for a lot of people across this country right now.”
He said there was no frustration at not being able to play and add a vital cog to their quarter-final preparation. “We obviously wanted to play but once the decision was made, you have to switch your mindset and we are in a position, aside from something happening in the game that was wrong for us, we would have been here this week.
“I don’t think we have seen it as a break. The time between each game is a bit longer and we have trained really well. There is a bit on this game so if we turn up and expect things to happen we will be going home.
“If you get to this stage, the eight teams here are capable of winning the competition. Physically probably mentally they are all on par. So it is about who can step up in the actual moment, the pressure moment when it does come, when opportunity presents itself. Who wants to take it.
“It is important you acknowledge that and get ready to take it. I know where I want to end.”
Last night, Tonga beat the United States 31-19 to avoid finishing last in Pool C.
The Tongans leave Japan with a win and avoided a sixth straight loss at Rugby World Cups, which would have been a Tonga record.
The US fell to a 10th straight defeat, which equals their worst run at the Rugby World Cup.
Before kickoff, the US and Tongan players stood with heads bowed in a moment’s silence for those affected by Typhoon Hagibis. The powerful typhoon ripped through parts of Japan’s eastern Pacific coast on Saturday, bringing damaging winds, torrential rain and flooding, leaving at least 19 people dead and more than a dozen missing.
The lingering effects of the typhoon forced World Rugby to cancel the game between Canada and Namibia but they decided it safe enough for Japan to play Scotland.
Outgoing Namibia coach Phil Davies was happy to take the two points they received for a default draw for the cancellation. “We gained one point in the last World Cup, and this year we’ve gained two,” Davies said. “Statistically we’ve improved.”