All Blacks class of 2016 tick a lot of boxes for Hansen

AUCKLAND: All Blacks coach Steve Hansen saw enough from his side’s impressive 39-21 victory over Wales yesterday to give him a hint that the most successful team of the professional age is going to maintain their standards, despite the loss of seasoned players.

The rugby world had been concentrating on the match to see if the All Blacks, without six all-time greats who ended their international careers after a successful World Cup campaign, would show signs of weakness.

In the first half, many would have been thinking they were fallible.

At one moment they were patient and composed as they played a game at high tempo designed to run the Welsh off Eden Park.

The next, they were dropping the ball or turning it over, missing tackles, making poor decisions and looking rattled as their opponents put them under pressure.

In the second half the class of 2016 knuckled down and showed they were just as competitive as their predecessors.

They scored three tries in the final 20 minutes, and kept Wales scoreless for the entire second half.

“We could not have asked for any more,” Hansen told reporters.

“We have got a group of young men.

New captain, new vice captain, new leaders ... some new players coming in.

“For large parts of the intense game it was not perfect, but what we did get out of that was having to learn lessons to keep our composure under pressure ... and to come through and win the game in the end,” he added.

The performance of severalplayers who had stepped into the boots of the likes of Richie McCaw, Dan Carter and the centre combination of Ma’a Nonu and Conrad Smith, was telling.

The machine just kept ticking without them.

Openside flanker Sam Cane was a handful on defence, flyhalf Aaron Cruden was able to dictate play and pop up in the most unlikely of places as a defender.

The midfield of Ryan Crotty and Malakai Fekito settled in the second period as they went forward and held the defensive line together.

Hansen praised his young leadership group for their maturity, then sent a warning to the rugby world.

“I think they put a line in the sand,” he said.

“We’ll go forward from here and get better. You have to start somewhere, and they’re going about re-establishing themselves.”

The intense pace of the All Blacks game and the impact of their bench were the key factors in their victory, according to the visitors’ coach, Warren Gatland.

The World Cup winners scored three unanswered tries in the final 20 minutes as they fought back from an 18-15 halftime deficit at Eden Park.

Both sides attempted to play high-tempo rugby, but the speed at which the All Blacks played eventually caught up with the visitors.

“It was quicker,” Wales captain Sam Warburton told reporters. “Chatting with the guys they felt good, but once we hit that 65-minute mark, that’s when you go into that different territory. “

Warburton said the intensity of the match haddrained his team’s energy in the final quarter. “You can’t train at that high intensity during the week, otherwise you won’t be able to last for the game.”

The All Blacks bench made a major contribution to the outcome, with the dynamic Patrick Tuipulotu and Ardie Savea providing impressive energy that lifted their side.

“It’s not a bad bench, is it?” Wales coach Warren Gatland said.

“They had a bit of firepower to come on. Somebody like Beauden Barrett, and TJ Perenara. He wasn’t even good enough to make the squad, but he’s not bad at all at nine.”

Gatland added he felt his side would only get better with the second Test next week in Wellington, though they would need to check on the fitness of winger George North, who suffered a hamstring injury.

“There were a lot of positives,” Gatland said.

“We had to be brave and bold, and we did that, and played some rugby.

“The couple of tries we scored were outstanding. We could have scored a couple more ... but we learned a lot from today and we will be better for it.”