Can ABs avoid unwanted history in Edinburgh?
There was no reason to gripe after the All Blacks thumped Wales 55-23 in Cardiff last Sunday.
While Wales inched their way within striking distance on several occasions at the Principality Stadium, the All Blacks eventually asserted their authority by using their big rigs to grind the home side into submission.
Had you looked at that result in isolation, you wouldn’t have dared believe the All Blacks were so unconvincing in the 38-31 win over Japan in Tokyo a week earlier.
It has been that sort of year for the All Blacks.
All over the shop earlier in the season, they are now in Edinburgh preparing to confront Scotland in a bid to win their sixth consecutive test.
Scotland have never beaten the All Blacks in 31 attempts, with 29 losses and two draws – the latter results recorded in 1983 and 1964.
A word of caution. Don’t dare believe Scotland can’t create history on Monday (3.15am kickoff NZT). Scotland coach Gregor Townsend will be telling his players the All Blacks vintage of 2022 is not the flashest in the cellar; the first-ever losses to Ireland and Argentina in New Zealand are testament to that.
Murrayfield can house 67,000 fans. If Scotland win, you can be sure a heck of a lot more will later say they were in the stadium when their countrymen sent the All Blacks crashing to their knees.
Neither side will lack motivation. Senior rugby writers Richard Knowler and Marc Hinton help set the scene. drum in the darkest jungle, rise in the dead of night. These All Blacks are capable of anything. So this should be worth watching.
They could win handsomely, lose or produce something in between. It may be entertaining. So boil the billy and tune in.
Marc Hinton: You bet it is. If only to see for yourself as it unfolds whether these All Blacks of Ian Foster’s really have turned the corner, or if they’re still the mercurial rabble who have failed to log backto-back standout performances this season.
Last week was impressive. But the challenge for this group is to repeat the dose, and Scotland will be no easybeats for an All Blacks outfit expected to feature a few changes in personnel. Put that kettle on and get your day off to an early one. whether it be coming in off the shoulder of the No 10 off a set play, or by spinning their wheels from broken play.
This will be the final outing for a number of ABs in 2022. They must prove their skills are sharp in whatever the conditions.
Hinton: A bit of both. The Scots will bring the fire and brimstone from the off in front of a charged Murrayfield, and the entertainment will be in whether the All Blacks look to match their early fury, or soak it up and hit them on the counter.
But if conditions are challenging I expect the New Zealanders to go back to playing the percentages, which they did so well in Cardiff. This team has moved past the entertain-atall-costs mode, and rightfully so. Four defeats in 2022 testify to the folly of not playing with pragmatism in tight tests.
Knowler: I say no. But I’m hyperventilating as I scribble that. I expect the ABs will be hell-bent to steam through this tour unbeaten. They have to be, after the shambles that unfolded a year ago in Dublin and Paris.
Win in Edinburgh, and then it sets up a cracker for the finale against England in London next weekend.
Hinton: Don’t discount the Scots. They’re certainly capable of joining Ireland and Argentina in making history at the New Zealanders’ expense in 2022, especially if they get away to a strong start and build early belief.
But will they? I think not. This feels like an All Blacks team that’s finally turned the corner, and they are hugely motivated to end this year on a positive note. That can’t happen with a fifth defeat for the year, and England still to come.