Best of luck, Warren – you will need it
In the first of his exclusive Telegraph columns, Sir Graham Henry explains why this tour will stretch the Lions to the limit Lions tours put New Zealand on the map and were the basis of our success
‘Better never stops’ is one of the maxims of the
All Blacks, a desire to seek constant improvement, an attitude that the British and Irish Lions will face from the moment that they touch down in New Zealand.
They already have to cope with the most demanding itinerary that has ever been put together and they will also have to contend with highly motivated players right across the land for whom playing against the Lions will be the pinnacle of their careers.
It is a hell of a task, but that is the nature of touring New Zealand. We have never lost our love of rugby. It has always meant so much to us and it continues to do so. It matters in a way that it did first of all to the Originals (the New Zealand tourists to Europe and America) of 1905 and again to the 1924-25 Invincibles and has continued to do so. New Zealand was a pretty insecure country back then and had something of an inferiority complex.
Those tours put us on the map, gave us confidence and laid the foundations for what was to come. The All Blacks are central to our national pride and identity.
And there is no assumption that it will carry on that way. It has to be worked at. The All Blacks take their legacy very seriously. It is discussed all the time and will be as the Lions arrive.
When the boys get selected for the All Blacks, it is their responsibility to enhance the jersey. Having respect for the past, for what rugby means to us all, is a central part of the deal.
The Lions know that. Warren Gatland knows that. But they will still have to come to terms with it
in its modern incarnation. The game has evolved here and is constantly doing so. The style of play these days is fast.
The All Blacks have looked to play that way for some while and the kids coming through want to emulate them. The boys all enjoy it, and if you enjoy something, you tend to be good at it. That is the way it is right through the system, down to the schools. It is a highly skilled, catch-and-pass style. There is very little kicking involved at the younger end of the sport. Schools rugby is the backbone of the game in this country. It is not unusual to have 5,000 or 6,000 watching games even when they are televised live.
In many ways, we have the 1971 Lions to thank for the way we now play the game. That series had a profound impact on the country and on me personally. Those Lions played with ball in hand, easy on the eye but potent as well. Of course, the game is still shaped by what happens up front and that will be true for this series. In that regard, the Lions look to have a formidable forward pack and they will surely look to throttle the life out of the opposition. On that rests so much.
The 1971 Lions had it all and they changed our whole outlook, moved us away from our forward-orientated approach. I was teaching and coaching at Auckland GS shortly after that and a book generated from that tour, with Lions players talking about each of their positions and the requirements of the game, became my coaching bible. Carwyn James (coach) and John Dawes (captain), showed New Zealand the way.
It will be the toughest of missions for these Lions. They are playing Super Rugby franchises, as well as the Maori, and not provinces as was the case on their last tour in 2005. It will be a step up. The Super franchises have nothing to lose and will be looking to play at pace and to express themselves.
The Lions will have to concentrate on doing their own thing. That pack looks exceptionally strong. They need to live within their own circle and control what they can control, their own game and what they want to do with it.
In 2005 (when I was coaching the All Blacks) I felt that they did not do that. They allowed themselves to get distracted by the incident involving Brian O’driscoll at the start of the first Test (when he was upended by Tana Umage and Keven Mealamu, dislocating a shoulder and being put out of the tour). It was very unfortunate but purely accidental. There was a lot of media attention whipped up and we made sure we gave our support to Tana and Keven. Looking back, the Lions got sidetracked. It Fanatics: All Blacks fans at the 2015 World Cup final, and (inset) 2005 Lions coach Sir Clive Woodward (left) with New Zealand’s Sir Graham Henry seemed to affect them for the second Test, although Dan Carter was sublime that night. And that was the series gone.
The All Blacks have a strategy built around expecting the unexpected to happen. When we lost that World Cup quarter-final against France at the Millennium Stadium in 2007, we did not have that on board.
The unexpected came in the shape of the officiating we encountered and we did not handle it. Our guys fell apart. We learnt from that. Four years later, on home soil in the World Cup, we lost Carter to injury, two other fly-halves into the bargain and had Richie Mccaw going round with a broken bone in his foot, but we got on with it.
That is what you need to do at all times. That is what Warren will need to do. There is enormous respect for the Lions in New Zealand. Warren has been through many Lions experiences already as a coach, as have a good number of his players on previous tours.
That continuity is vital. The All Blacks have it, and have made a point of having it. There have barely been any changes in the management over the last decade (I retired after the 2011 World Cup, and doc Deborah Robinson has subsequently left), and that carry over has been very important.
But that does not mean that you stand still. The All Blacks are not that way inclined, as the Lions will discover.
Better never stops.
Sir Graham Henry was Lions coach in 2001, and All Blacks coach for the 2005 tour