New Zealand’s players have been warned not to overplay their hand in Saturday’s first Test against France at Eden Park.
Assistant coach Wayne Smith has ordered his players to curb their natural instincts so as not to give away any secrets before this year’s World Cup.
Smith said he wanted the All Blacks to practise some of their key moves but said they would be keeping a few tricks up their sleeve for the World Cup.
”There is one school of thought which says you have to rehearse it, fine-tune it and be executing it well before you can use it and there is another school of thought which says do it at training but don’t bring it into matches,” Smith told a news conference on Friday.
”We’re probably not one or the other, we’re both. We’ll execute sometimes. If you look at last season you can see patches of different sorts of games and that is probably to try and become good at something you haven’t been good at it in the past.”
New Zealand are overwhelming favourites to win Saturday’s match against a depleted French side missing most of their top players but Smith said the visitors should not be underestimated.
France have a history of defying the odds to beat the All Blacks, most famously when they came from behind to win their 1999 World Cup semifinal.
”When you play the French you have to expect the unexpected. You have to go out and use your eyes and communicate and adapt to what’s happening,” Smith said.
”That’s especially the case this week because they have individuals in there who are going to do something different to the guys we have played previously.”
French fullback Thomas Castaignede said his team were expecting a torrid encounter and would need to be at their best to match the All Blacks.
”It will be difficult to win with this young side. We need to play very simple rugby, defence is really the main thing. You expect them to attack you from everywhere.” – Reuters