What it’s like to train with the All Blacks
Seeing New Zealand’s players up close gives special insight into what makes them such a force
Afence surrounds a single rugby pitch at the Lensbury in Teddington, New Zealand’s training base for the first leg of their end-of-year tour. The dark material pinned to it obscures the playing surface from prying eyes and a thick covering of earlymorning mist provides a sense of mystique. None of it helps the nagging knot in my stomach at what is to come – a training session with the world champions.
So much has been written about the aura of the All Blacks that it is easy to be cynical. Still, it feels quite surreal when Beauden Barrett, TJ Perenara, Vaea Fifita and David Havili arrive to join us – even more so when they mingle and introduce themselves.
Despite having gone down against an inspired Australia a fortnight ago, these men are members of a phenomenal team. With 77 wins from their past 86 Tests, a period that includes back-to-back Rugby World Cup victories, they sit a decent distance in front of England at the summit of World Rugby’s rankings.
Barrett, slighter and more sinewy in person than you might imagine, is the world player of the year. Today at Twickenham, he is captaining his country for the first time. Just over 24 hours out, he does not seem nervous. “I’d be lying if I said it hasn’t affected my week,” concedes the 26-year-old. “But there are leaders all around me. It won’t be too different.”
One of his chief lieutenants will be fellow Hurricane Perenara, who leads a series of passing drills following a brisk warm-up. Somehow, he recognises a semblance of technique in what I am doing – a legacy of skidding balls towards toes and spooning it over heads for years. Perenara is an archetypally talkative scrum-half with a very wide grin. He wants to know which clubs I played for, why I stopped and whether I have ever been to the Wellington suburb near his home town to visit old Wimbledon team-mates.
Then, at the request of visiting coach Neil Sweeney, he marks out the distance he would be from the first receiver in an international match, marching about 20 metres away from the goalposts. Casually, Perenara fizzes a pass that slaps into the padding. Standing pitch-level with someone executing those skills is striking.
Havili, a promising full-back in excellent form, combines with Barrett for the next rotation. We are to hoist high kicks between pairs and concentrate on the technique of reeling them in. “Get your hands above your eye line as you get into position,” Havili hints. “And tuck your elbows in, you don’t want the ball to slip out,” adds Barrett.
Afterwards, Barrett describes his rituals on the day before a game. He hits a handful of restarts and aims a few punts to touch, as if New Zealand have been awarded a penalty. He is asked whether, like Jonny Wilkinson, he keeps going until he has nailed 20 place-kicks.
“I don’t,” Barrett smiles. “That would be tough on the body as much as anything. If I take 10 and I get 10, great. If I get one, I take away what I’ve learned from that.”
The rangy Fifita, an explosive back-rower in the midst of a breakthrough year, stormed into the consciousness of many European fans with his 40-metre surge to score against Argentina in September. He offers pointers during a quick clinic on line-out lifting. “This man can get 12 feet in the air in a game,” announces Sweeney. Fifita shrugs. “Maybe 13.”
To finish the session, we split into two teams for a game of touch rugby. The All Blacks, all of whom are starting against the Barbarians, understandably stay on the sideline. But they watch us bunch towards the ball over a frenetic, sweaty 10-minute spell. At half-time, Barrett and Perenara join my team’s huddle. “I reckon you can fill the field,” suggests the former, relaying the idea that has underpinned New Zealand’s attacking strategy for years. “Spread out and you don’t have to work so hard. You move the ball.”
There is a final chance to chat when the whistle blows. Another journalist wants to know which players they admire outside the All Blacks set-up.
Barrett rapidly highlights Jonathan Davies, the British and Irish Lions’ man of the series. Fifita singles out Ireland openside Sean O’brien. Perenara beams again.
“I’ll go with Julian Savea,” he says, seizing the chance to praise his long-term ally with the Hurricanes and New Zealand, who is running out for the Barbarians today. “He’s not an All Black at the moment, but he’s playing well.” Today at Twickenham and throughout this month, we get to watch such talent in action.