Hansen on losing skipper, challenge and ending on

WHEN New Zealand coach Steve Hansen met up with the media yesterday, the big talking point was the absence of his skipper Kieran Read from the team to play Wales this Saturday.

The Western Mail was on hand to hear the update on Read and listen to Hansen’s thoughts on Wales’ 64-year barren run against the All Blacks. Q: You are without your skipper Kieran Read. What’s the situation there? A: There’s two key people in terms of an injury update.

Keiran has hurt his back, so he’s unavailable. He’s resting up in his bedroom at the moment.

The reason he’s had a hip flexor problem is probably coming with his back. He’s in his bed, so he’s flat and not very mobile at the moment.

I did say at the start of the week that Rieko Ioane wasn’t going to be playing. I don’t know what the doc has done, but he’s fixed him and he’s available.

He had a scan on his shoulder and there was no damage there and through the week it’s just got better and better. We tested him today and he’s fine, so he will start.

While you are disappointed not having Kieran, we are pretty excited about having Rieko. That emotionally levels out the whole plane, doesn’t it? Q: Why have you gone for Sam Whitelock as skipper and not your vice-captain Beauden Barrett? A: While Beauden enjoyed the experience of being captain in the Barbarians game, he would prefer to just to concentrate on the 10 role of being the driver. It’s a big role. You don’t want to overload him too much in a big Test match.

You have got two other guys – Sam Cane and Sam Whitelock – who have captained their sides all year. It’s a big Test match, so you want people who have a lot of experience in that role. Q: You had options at No 8 in terms of replacing Read. Why have you gone for Sam Whitelock’s brother Luke? A: The other option was using Vaea Fifita and having Liam Squire play 8. I think Vaea’s just starting to show signs that he’s had a big year and needs time to step out of it.

I am very happy with how he has played this year and his development, but from a mental point of view young guys can get quite frazzled. He has been chucked in the deep end a lot quicker than what we would normally do because of the injuries we’ve had and he’s had a big work-load.

Luke is a pretty cool, calm customer and has a high work-rate, so he got the nod. Q: Losing Kieran is obviously a blow. How confident are you that everyone will step up in his absence? A: I am confident. If you are not available, it’s an opportunity for someone else. It’s a big opportunity for Luke and a big opportunity for the team to step up to the plate and do the job without him.

While it’s disappointing to lose your leader and a guy that’s played a 100 odd Test matches, you can’t do anything about it, so there’s no point me sitting here and getting all emotional about it. Q: When you look at this team and the team that started out in June, you must be wondering what the hell is going on. A: Oh, I know what’s going on. They are all injured or had personal reasons for not being here. We can’t do anything about that.

We’ve just got to look at the positives of it and the positives are we have got a lot of people getting opportunities they wouldn’t normally be getting and in the long run that will be good for us. This is a team we have got a lot of faith in, so they have just got to get out and do the job. Q: In the wake of the Scotland match, you identified attitude and discipline as two key parts of your game you need to see better this week. How is that shaping up? A: Pretty good. It’s a two-way thing. You have got a referee that’s going to control the game, so what sort of mood he’s in could reflect onwhat we do. But we have worked hard on things we can control. The offsides is the obvious one, so give a metre. Q: Have Wales selected the team you were expecting? A: Pretty much. They have got a couple of injuries. Jonathan Davies is a big loss for them. He obviously wasn’t going to play, but the team they have picked is pretty much the one that played against Australia.

The team for the Georgian game was a young side. They rolled the dice and got away with that. It’s what you would expect anyone to do. England are doing it with their team to play Samoa. Q: Wales have gone with a dualplaymaker option at 10-12 this autumn. What do you make of that move? A: It’s something that southern hemisphere teams have done for years, isn’t it? That’s what we call the first-fives and second-fives and up here they call them inside centres and outside centres.

You are doing it so you can have an extra driver on the park, an extra kicker. It’s an indication he obviously wants to play a bit more football.

I think that’s a fall-out from the 2015 World Cup and he’s obviously learned something in the Lions tour. It worked down there for them so he’s probably hoping it’s going to do it again. Q: How important for your group is it to finish the year on a real positive note? A: It is important that you finish every year on a positive note. You don’t want too many rocks under the old towel. You get 80 minutes to decide whether that happens or not, so we will wait to see. Q: What did you make of Wales in the Australia match, with the bulk of the side to face you having played in that game? A: I think that was a good game. For long periods, Wales had momentum going their way. So we are expecting a tough game on Saturday. Q: It’s 64 years since Wales last beat New Zealand. Is that something you use at all? A: History is a little bit like a drought. Every day you are one closer to it raining. So, every year they will be one closer to winning a game I suppose.

We don’t talk about winning and losing, we talk about preparing and having a process that allows us to go out and play well or the best we can. If that’s good enough then you get the reward for it. Q: Warren said you might have a drink together after the game on Saturday night. Does that depend on the result? A: Well, we drew the Lions series in New Zealand and had a drink there. Win or lose or draw, we’ll always have a drink. It’s what rugby is about.