All Blacks eye English No 7 ahead of semifinal
Flanker Sam Underhill didn’t have any desire to inspect the self-inflicted wound that cost England a rare victory over the All Blacks in London last November.
Underhill had reason to feel angry after he scored what should have been the match winner against the All Blacks at Twickenham, only for Jerome Garces to rule it out because of an earlier infringement by replacement lock Courtney Lawes.
Having consulted with his TMO, Garces noted Lawes was offside when he charged down a clearing kick by TJ Perenara, disallowed the try and moments later declared the All Blacks 16-15 winners.
Asked about his emotions after the ‘‘try’’ when he spoke to media in Tokyo yesterday, Underhill replied: ‘‘Short lived.
‘‘No, it wasn’t a try so there wasn’t really an awful lot to . . . I think the same as any moment in any game that doesn’t happen.
‘‘It could have been consequential, but it wasn’t so there’s no point dwelling on it.’’
At the time, though, Underhill must have been fuming.
The Twickenham crowd certainly did and let Frenchman Garces know he should either toss his whistle into the English Channel or throw it into the rubbish tip.
Disallowed tries aside, there’s no chance of Underhill not having a bright light shone on all aspects of his game by the All Blacks ahead of the World Cup semifinal in Yokohama on Saturday night.
Although not tall, he’s built like a bulldog that has been on a high-protein diet since it was a pup and is a tackle machine on the paddock.
Underhill’s appetite for defence was evident during the 40-16 win over the Wallabies in the quarterfinal in Oita, a result that ended Michael Cheika’s international coaching career.
Underhill made 20 tackles at Oita Stadium, as did No 8 Billy Vunipola. Fellow flanker Tom Curry completed 17 and was named man of the match.
The All Blacks will know England can be content to play without the ball, and their defence since former All Blacks coach John Mitchell took over the portfolio has contributed to their success during the tournament in Japan.
England coach Eddie Jones has elected to change the dynamics of his side’s game by selecting two fast flankers, rather than pick the traditional big bruiser in the role of No 6.
Although Cheika also followed suit by selecting breakdown scavengers Michael Hooper and Pocock as his flankers, Underhill expects the All Blacks’ modus operandi to differ from the one presented to them by the Aussies.
‘‘Probably a different style, I wouldn’t say they are better or more difficult to play against,’’ he said. ‘‘Probably, slightly, more of an attacking side to them. They go pretty hard at the breakdown, but more of an attacking threat.’’