Hansen frustrated at stop-start game
Steve Hansen lamented the ugly final quarter of the All Blacks’ 58-14 win over Namibia on Friday morning, describing the lack of flow in the World Cup pool game as ‘‘frustrating’’.
The continued intervention of the TMO, combined with the time taken to reset scrums and attend to injuries, as well as the yellowcarding of Namibia loosehead prop Jaco Engels, detracted from the game and the All Blacks struggled to get any momentum against the spirited Namibians.
Scoring nine tries and winning by such a convincing scoreline at the unfamiliar Olympic Stadium is hardly a disaster, but Hansen knows his side fell well short of the required standards against the tournament’s bottom seed.
The unfamiliar combinations in a largely second-string side and Beauden Barrett’s five-from-nine kicking performance all contributed to a rusty effort and lowerthan-expected margin.
Namibia, led by tough flanker Jacques Burger and with openside Tinus du Plessis and hooker Tinus du Plessis making 29 tackles between them, were surprisingly competitive in the lineouts, competed at the breakdowns and forced the New Zealanders’ flat attack into errors.
Hansen reinforced how agitated he was to watch the game deteriorate in the last 20 minutes as the game repeatedly ground to a half.
‘‘Frustrating – it was very hard to play rugby when you get a stopstart game like that,’’ he said.
‘‘So we got through that and it will be a good learning curve to learn to deal with stuff like that going forward.’’
The challenge for the All Blacks will be to learn how to cope with any disruptions. It is likely other teams will sense they can become annoyed, and potentially vulnerable, if they increase the number of stoppages.
Hansen said the All Blacks may have to nut out a plan to ensure the players remain focused and don’t lose concentration.
‘‘Definitely. We have got to deal with it better than we dealt with it
I am sure they are under instructions but when you get a game like tonight the goodwill goes out the door and you get a little frustrated. Steve Hansen, right
tonight anyway,’’ he said.
‘‘It is difficult, every time we had a scrum – I think at one stage there we had about four minutes (of stoppage time) and that is not what the game wants.
‘‘I don’t know how to fix it but that is what happens sometimes, you get the opposition struggling to stay up or we are struggling to stay up. The game doesn’t need it, so it becomes a little bit frustrating.’’
TMO George Ayoub also had a busy night, often being called into clarify whether tries had been scored or to rule whether foul play had been committed.
The use of the TMO has been criticised heavily throughout the tournament, with many fans and commentators lamenting it is detracting from the games as a spectacle. The players, too, aren’t happy.
‘‘They are working hard on trying to get that right,’’ Hansen said.
‘‘If someone commits foul play they need to know about it, if someone scores a try they need to make sure they do their due diligence to make sure it is a try.
‘‘You would like them to speed it up if they can. I am sure they are under instructions but when you get a game like tonight the goodwill goes out the door and you get a little frustrated – and I am talking about the fans, not the players and coaches.’’
Meanwhile, Colin Slade’s tight hamstring was the only injury concern for the All Blacks. Slade, who shifted from fullback to first fiveeighth at halftime, was replaced in the third quarter by Ben Smith who went to the back to allow Beauden Barrett to return to the playmaker’s role.