No fisticuffs from Georgia
The muscular Georgia forwards have a fearsome reputation for meting out punishment on the field, but coach Milton Haig said those days are gone.
"If you have noticed, we haven't had a fight on the field for two years," he said perhaps harking back to an infamous brawl against Canada in 2013.
The mass fight, which left blood and bruises all round, was ignited when Viktor Kolelishvili, on the bench for the All Blacks clash at the Millennium Stadium, felled Canadian flyhalf Liam Underwood with a head-high tackle.
Haig may also have been referring to the near riot when Georgia played Russia at Tbilisi a few months later. Fights in matches between Georgia and Russia are not uncommon.
More recently there were three yellow cards against Uruguay and two in a feisty pre-World Cup match with Spain, one of them for Levan Datunashvili who starts at lock against the All Blacks.
To be fair to Georgia, in this World Cup they have only had two yellow cards for misdemeanours in two games, the same as the All Blacks.
Haig was aware of the need to calm his team emotionally before their first ever match against the world's leading side.
As much as he appreciates the significance of the occasion, Haig has also selected what is basically a second-string side, depriving many of his best players of a test against the All Blacks because their focus is more on their final pool game against Namibia.
A win over Namibia next week gives them a shot at finishing third in Pool C ahead of Tonga and thereby earning automatic qualification to the 2019 World Cup in Japan.
"They realise that, some of the older guys, their legacy is to do something that no other Georgia team has done and that's to qualify automatically.
"They understand it. They don't like it but it goes with the territory."
Haig said he is acutely aware that with so much at stake the Georgians must maintain self control in every match.
"That's something we have worked hard on, our discipline, keeping our emotions in check, making sure we think clearly but also have fire in your belly that you put your body on the line," he said.
"Georgians are passionate about their rugby. They are built for it. They are physical."
Agence France-Presse
