Despite not being world champions, Ireland have a stronger claim than South Africa to be considered the game’s ultimate force – the most consistent, innovative and resilient team on the planet. Inevitably, this creates a framework to judge Robertson’s All Blacks. To not put too fine a point on it – Ian Foster’s All Blacks were smart enough and good enough to beat Ireland, but will Robertson’s be? And there are specific areas in which it feels Robertson’s side have fallen behind – namely their ability to destructively scrummage. He’s got four of the pack who started in Paris, and another, Tamaiti Williams, who came off the bench, and therefore there is a fair basis to assess an All Blacks scrum that enjoyed dominance a year ago.

Source: New Zealand Herald November 06, 2024 23:31 UTC