/ 10 August 2005

All Blacks brace for Wallabies on the rebound

New Zealand coach Graham Henry is bracing for a Wallaby backlash when his All Blacks take them on in Saturday’s Tri-Nations and Bledisloe Cup rugby Test match at Sydney’s Olympic Stadium.

The Wallabies are smarting after last month’s disastrous tour of South Africa, when they were pilloried by the Australian media for their off-field behaviour and for losing both of their Test matches against the Springboks.

The All Blacks lost 22-16 to the Springboks in their Tri-Nations match in Cape Town last weekend, so Saturday’s game looms large for both trans-Tasman rivals to get on the board in the tournament.

But Henry, who coached the British and Irish Lions to a losing series in Sydney against the Wallabies in 2001, knows the perils of taking on a stung Wallaby team with plenty to prove.

”I was here for the 2003 World Cup and there was quite a bit of negativism around the Australian team prior to the semifinal [against New Zealand],” Henry told a press conference on Wednesday.

”I think we’ll face the same sort of team that the All Blacks did on that occasion — an Australian team that is ready to play, on the edge, up against it and they will respond as they normally do with a huge performance.”

Australia defied expectations to trounce the All Blacks 22-10 in that World Cup semifinal at the Olympic stadium.

New Zealand will give injured skipper Tana Umaga extra time to recover from an injured ankle before finalising their side.

Umaga sprained his ankle in the Cape Town loss and Henry has named Conrad Smith on standby should Umaga not recover in time to play in the centres.

”Tana trained today, but not with the team, and he got a reasonable report, so it’s a 50-50 deal at this stage whether he will play,” Henry said.

He said Umaga has galvanised the All Blacks as team leader.

”He’s obviously playing out of his skin at the moment. He’s playing as good rugby as I’ve seen him play at this level, he had an outstanding series against the British Lions and I think he’s grown immensely as a captain of the team,” Henry said.

”He’s always had the respect of the players and they look up to him; he leads from the front … all of those things you’re going to miss.

”Conrad Smith has played some pretty crucial Tests for us, he played in Paris last year at centre, he’s played against the Lions and he’s always played well.

”His work rate and his feel for the game, he won’t let us down, but we won’t have Tana’s leadership.”

The All Blacks will also be without flying winger Siviteni Sivivatu, who has a leg injury, and scrumhalf Bryon Kelleher with concussion.

Mils Muliaina has ousted Leon MacDonald at fullback with the prospect of a hard, fast surface on Saturday, while Piri Weepu comes in for Kelleher.

”Mils looked pretty sharp when he came on last weekend against South Africa and we think he’s ready for it, and the track’s going to be hard and the weather going to be good, so we’ll unleash him,” said assistant coach Wayne Smith. — Sapa-AFP