Irrespective of this week’s game between the All Blacks and Wales, their shock loss to England in the semi-final of the Rugby World Cup will remain a talking point for months to come.

It will be interesting to know the conclusions those at the helm come to as to why they crashed out when they presumed they were on track for a third straight victory.

As I’ve mentioned on several occasions, the AB’s vulnerability has never disappeared. Rather, their depth of talent and quality of play means its existence is rarely exposed.

The tragedy for Hansen, however, is that despite being a master of the tactical game, and a person we as a nation of have come to love, he will never be given the opportunity to try again. Instead, it will be up to the next regime to not only rebuild the jersey but unravel the mystery as to why their plan fell to pieces.

Although an in-depth rebuild will no doubt occur, the concern I have is the likelihood of another miss which if not addressed, will remain an Achilles heel that could haunt the next generation at least for the foreseeable future.

The reason I suspect this might happen is twofold; firstly, because although it’s mental, it isn’t ‘attitudinal’ like many believe and secondly, because those tasked with the responsibility of providing the answer can’t see the issue hence it remains a mystery.

In my opinion, the game on Saturday wasn’t lost because of technical or tactical inadequacies. Instead it was lost because our players were overwhelmed by an English side who knew they were there to win.

The fact is, the AB’s prowess has meant that for the most part, opposing teams tend to turn up hoping for a miracle rather than seeing them as a group of players who can be beaten. As a result, the AB’s themselves have bought into an air of invincibility; hence they interpret the occasional loss as poor execution rather than a consequence of a vulnerability they’ve never quite resolved.

The initial shock followed by dismay and desperation told a story that was deeper than the humiliation written over their faces. Make no mistake, the All Blacks were desperate to win and tried everything in their power to pull it back. However, despite the realisation that things were falling apart, they had no answer to the onslaught nor the ability to correct their woes as they didn’t know what was causing it.

In simple terms, the English knew they had the ability and game plan to win. The AB’s on the other hand not only looked unnerved by the occasion, they became resentful of their demise as it wasn’t supposed to happen. 

As the game wore on, England’s increasing dominance validated their strategy whereas the All Blacks were waiting for something to change to swing it in their favour.

The fact it didn’t happen wasn’t because the AB’s didn’t care (or weren’t ‘hungry’ enough as some have suggested), it’s because their confidence was unravelling and they didn’t know what to do about it.

Apart from the obvious, there were several occasions during the game which told us where the teams were at. In particular, a couple that stand out for me were when tries to England were reversed because of technical errors. What interested me wasn’t the relief on the side of the All Blacks, it was the lack of concern expressed by the English. Their behaviour indicated they believed there was more to come so instead of getting side-tracked by those issues, they simply continued with their game plan.

In contrast, the All Blacks were stunned into submission within minutes even though they had the potential (Skills, Knowledge and Experience) to come back if they got it right in their heads.

 

The next era

While those who take over the coaching roles going forward will know the game of rugby, the question they need to ask themselves is why did this team who were so good capitulate when it mattered?

The reason it’s important to work through this is because it will either be something they understand and therefore address, or it will remain a weakness those they come up against will find ways to exploit. Again, the accuracy of the answer will come down to who they appoint to ‘identify’ the gap.

As it stands, I believe the feeling in the team will be one of disbelief as I suspect they thought they had everything right and it simply didn’t work. If this is the conclusion they come to, it will drive an agenda that says ‘we have to get over it’ rather than seeing it as a chink in their arsenal that they have to figure out.

While the need for answers should be obvious (given their inability to turn it around), the fact they couldn’t change it provides good reason to look at it more closely. Assuming they do, they will hopefully ask themselves what prevented their players from firing when they’ve clearly got the talent?

If they believe it was psychological (given they were unable to lift their spirits), it might lead to something useful. However, if they believe they were beaten by a better team, they’ll miss the point entirely.

 

Was it a lack of hunger?

As we would expect, there are pundits across the country saying their ‘hunger’ wasn’t there, however, a team’s hunger to win is a consequence of an inappropriate mindset rather than the state they should aim to foster.

A team’s hunger to win is derived from a need rather than it being an expression of confidence. If the AB’s wanted to win as they clearly did, it’s not a state I would back, whereas having confidence in themselves and their game plan was what they should have been focusing on.

Because of the methods they use, however, their confidence left them in minutes meaning their only option was to play the long game in the hope something would change. When they realised it wasn’t happening, their efforts turned to desperation leading to further breakdowns in their game plan and ultimately their undoing.

England’s mindset on the other hand was bang on hence they were able to retain their laser-like focus throughout the game along with steadfast composure to minimise the damage when under attack.

 

Summary

Despite this blog being focused on the All Blacks, England without question deserved the win. They were not only superior across every facet of play, they caused the AB’s to disintegrate which they have to be given credit for.

In particular, Eddie Jones has to be congratulated for their victory by instilling the belief in his players that the win was inevitable if they followed his plan while John Mitchell’s superb defensive eye meant the AB’s attack was reduced to bit-part breaks hence it never really got going.

Whether they repeat their dominance over South Africa in the final is yet to be seen even though some will argue that beating the AB’s so convincingly in the semi is as good as lifting the trophy.

 

Other news

Congratulations to UBank for being the first bank in Australia to make the country's top 50 in the 'Best Places to Work' Awards. Claiming 13th spot is deserved recognition for the superb work CEO Lee Hatton and her team have done to transform banking in Australia.

 

 

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