Foul play no distraction for rampant All Blacks

ALL Blacks captain Richie McCaw said yesterday that New Zealand would not let any foul play by Argentina put them off their Rugby Championship Test at Waikato Stadium today.

The World Champions will draw level with France as the most successful Test playing nation to date if they win this weekend and McCaw insisted they would not be affected by any underhand tactics.

Argentina have acquired a reputation as an uncompromising side with loose forward Leonardo Senatore currently serving a nineweek ban for biting.

Last year, prop Juan Figallo was suspended for three weeks for head-butting.

Although the All Blacks have preferred to describe the South Americans as “physical” rather than “dirty”, McCaw said New Zealand would stick to their game plan.

“You don’t take a backward step, but we’re here to play rugby and if we do that properly, not worrying about the opposition doing those sort of things, then you’re probably on the front foot from the start,” he said.

An All Blacks win in the third-round Rugby Championship match would take them to 382 victories from 504 matches. It took France 695 Tests to achieve 382 wins while third England have 356 wins from 665 matches.

The reigning World Champions, who are also defending the Rugby Championship crown, have assembled a battled-hardened side containing 663 caps with only centre Francis Saili making his debut.

The world’s leading Test scorer, Dan Carter, returns at flyhalf, after an injury plagued year, and needs to score just one point to become the first player to amass 1 400 Test points.

Argentina, who tightened up their defence after losing by 60 points to the Springboks and reduced the deficit to just five a week later, have made four changes.

Influential captain Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe, who returns after missing the opening two matches with a calf injury, said their aim is to push New Zealand as hard as they can.

“There is no other way against the best other than push them to the fullest and try to make them hesitate,” he said.

“We must have confidence and always want more.” — Sapa-AFP

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