There is an old saying in politics that one should never let a “serious crisis” go to waste. While it is too early to say this All Blacks team is at that point after the shock defeat to Argentina in Wellington, another one at Eden Park before a challenging two-Test tour of South Africa will put it on the brink.
It means that only four Tests into the Scott Robertson era, the spotlight is not only on the players after their 38-30 loss at Sky Stadium, during which they lacked clarity and cohesion – the two things they were determined to fix after two less than convincing performances against England – but also on those leading them.
And there are plenty of coaches to report back to Robertson, which – and there is no point tiptoeing around the issue – may be part of the issue. The weekend's setback will force them to reflect on their own roles and responsibilities and how they fit into the wider team.
Robertson, with overall control, leads a team which includes Jason Holland (backs and midfield), Leon MacDonald (attack and outside backs), Scott Hansen (halfbacks and defence) and Jason Ryan (forwards), along with Tamati Ellison (contact skills), Corey Flynn (lineout throwing), and David Hill (kicking) – the latter pair are engaged on a part-time basis.
Wayne Smith is a performance coach but is probably more of a mentor for Robertson than an every-day influence on the team.
That adds up to a lot of voices, and Hansen, the highly-regarded assistant who worked under Robertson at the Crusaders, today left his media audience in no doubt about where the focus lies this week.
“It starts with the coaches,” he said. “When you look at performances like that where the synergy, the game itself and the performance wasn’t of the standard you expect, you look at yourself first as a coach. How did you help the individual? How did you help set the team up? We’ve had those conversations as coaches about what the week looks like.”
Hansen said the coaches met yesterday and this morning to discuss the team's preparation and performance.
It will take time for the game plan and individual responsibilities to bed in with the players, but few predicted such difficulties in three of the first four Tests of the year.
Having watched his charges go from a position of strength at 20-6 up shortly before halftime against the Pumas to concede a total of 38 points, the defence coach said he took the lapses personally.
Not surprisingly, he’s not the only one. “They’re men,” Hansen said. “You let them feel it because they care. You give them the time and space to feel that. We still are. There’s hurt there and there should be.
“If you look at facts and take out the emotion, the facts are we were caught in our own half. Our efficiency of getting out of there wasn’t good enough. Argentina were allowed to apply pressure on us and we couldn’t respond well enough in that area of the field.”
The failings were so widespread that the All Blacks will be focusing on the critical few things they can change ahead of the Test at a place they haven’t been defeated in 30 years – a record they are all too aware of and which brings its own pressure.
Chief among them will be an attitude shift in winning the gain line – overall the forwards were physically dominated after the break – in a bid to build momentum. Increasing the pace of the game would also assist with that and it would surprise if TJ Perenara was selected at halfback ahead of the quicker Cortez Ratima.
They were also exposed tactically.
The All Blacks generally respond appropriately to a defeat with a vastly improved performance, but Hansen said it had to be earned rather than expected.
“We’ve addressed that,” he said. “There should be a response because of what we go through for the week, because of the learnings and adjustments – it could be attitude or physical, it won’t just happen.
“The response also needs to… take us through the year. It needs to be a long-term response.”
Prop Ofa Tu’ungafasi added: “Coming into this week, there’s certainly a lot of edge in the team.
“A loss is never taken easily in this environment. Over the weekend we spoke about looking inwards, individually. Look in the mirror, what can we do better as a player, and it was the same with the management – what can they do better?
“The good thing is we’re playing them again this weekend.”
It wasn’t all doom and gloom. Hansen appeared to be relishing the challenge and Tu’ungafasi brought levity when referring to the unusual occurrence of the first scrum being awarded a full 60 minutes into the Test.
“We’re just going to run around in the backs this week in training and shorten our scrum sessions,” he said. “No, I don’t think we’ll see that again.”
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