Hansen faces inconvenient facts
For Steve Hansen it’s all about the inconvenient facts. They’re the little pieces of inescapable honesty that you’ve got to embrace if you entertain any hope of being the last team standing at the turkey shoot they call the Rugby World Cup.
The All Blacks coach was in fine form as he met with the media just hours before boarding the plane for London where his History Boys will touch down looking to become the first All Blacks side to lift the global crown on foreign soil, as well as first back-to-back and three-time champions.
To do that, a refreshingly honest and enjoyably reflective Hansen conceded he and his men had to get a lot of things right. Up somewhere near the top of that list was to avoid turning up with the ‘‘arrogant’’ approach that proved the undoing of the 2007 team of which he was an assistant coach, and others before them.
Hansen is into his 12th year with the All Blacks (the first eight as an assistant to Graham Henry) and with his policeman’s keen sense of observance he’s picked up a lot along the way. That’s where his ‘‘inconvenient facts’’ come in, working in tandem with the ‘‘honest eyes’’ needed to succeed at the highest level of this brutal sport.
He firmly believes the All Blacks have evolved demonstrably since that ultimate World Cup ignominy in Cardiff at the hands of the French in ‘07 – to the point where they can have ‘‘no fears’’ of a probable de´ja`-vu quarterfinal there on October 17.
If the All Blacks win their pool – a high likelihood given they’ve never lost a test to Argentina – they will meet either Ireland or France in a Millennium Stadium quarterfinal. Form suggests it could well be Les Bleus in a matchup sure to have the ghosts of ‘07 swirling round the rafters of the Cardiff arena.
‘‘We can’t fear that,’’ Hansen said. ‘‘There is going to be a lot of anxiety from the public about that. It will be what it will be, and if we’re good enough to get into the quarterfinal we’ll have to deal with that.
‘‘It’s about getting your processes right, your preparation right and your game right … the catch-cry of 2011 was expect the unexpected. I don’t think we did that in 2007.
‘‘I think we rocked up a little arrogant possibly, like previous All Blacks teams over the years may have. We were too comfortable, and just expected it to happen.
‘‘In any sport if you rock up into a contest and you just expect it to happen, the other athletes will have something to say about that. You’re got to go earn the right to win it.
‘‘We’re in good shape in that regard. We’ve understood that was a mistake and one we’ve worked hard on making sure we don’t repeat.’’
Hansen offered a revealing insight into his mindset around keeping those All Blacks’ standards high. Given they’ve lost just three times in four years on his watch, it’s an approach that has its merit.
‘‘When you get over-confident you think you’re doing things right but you’re not. When you look at it with honest eyes there are a few inconvenient facts that you’re missing. It’s those inconvenient facts you’ve got to find -and you’ve got to look for them.
‘‘The inconvenient facts are about the stuff you can’t brush over, because if you keep brushing it over you’re going to fall on your face.’’
For those reasons Hansen feels no anxiety, only excitement ahead of what would be the All Blacks’ finest ever accomplishment should they succeed. He’s even ready for the usual northern hemisphere grilling over his captain being a cheat and the haka an unfair advantage.
‘‘You’ve got to embrace all that. It’s a special time. We’re going to something that’s a pinnacle in our sport, and a privilege to be part of. We’ve got to enjoy it as well, and it’s important we get that balance right.’’