Losing is such a pain Hansen opens up on ‘hurt’ of shock loss to Springboks
All Blacks coach Steve Hansen admits his team is still hurting from its recent loss to the Springboks but he was playing down the pressure for revenge in Pretoria this weekend.
A weary All Blacks squad arrived in Johannesburg from a delayed flight out of Buenos Aires following their weekend win over the Pumas that saw them wrap up another Rugby Championship title early.
The 36-34 loss to the Springboks in Wellington may have been more than two weeks ago in Wellington but it still burns.
‘‘It’s like any hurt I guess, time allows it to go away but it’s there,’’ Hansen told a group of South African media on arrival.
‘‘It’s no different for them, is it? When they get beaten they hurt too. It will be a good game, I’m looking forward to it.’’
With the All Blacks and Springboks in the same pool for next year’s World Cup in Japan, there’s a psychological element at play with this rematch though Hansen wouldn’t be baited into looking beyond Sunday (NZT).
‘‘It’s important any time that we don’t lose twice in a row. But it’s got nothing to do with the World Cup . . . it’s about the tradition and rivalry that we have and it’s always been a strong one and one that we enjoy and I’m sure they do too. They are one-nil up this year and it’s about putting a performance in we can be proud of.’’
Hansen said winning the Rugby Championship early wouldn’t take any sting out of this match.
‘‘Life for the All Blacks doesn’t