Secretive All Blacks have right attitude
The All Blacks, who held a 'secretive' training session ahead of Saturday's season-opening Test against Ireland in Auckland, plan to 'keep it simple'.
According to the New Zealand media the current World Cup champions have completed the majority of their training in private.
However, they have been readily available at media sessions, with captain Richie McCaw suggesting the number one ranked team in the world will focus on getting the basics right.
McCaw said that an uncompromising mental approach was needed if the All Blacks were to "get it right" against the plucky Irish.
While careful analysis shows that not all World Champions have "hangovers”, with the 1987 All Blacks and 1999 Wallabies notable exceptions, All Blacks selector and former flyhalf Grant Fox said that the captain was wary of how other sides had performed after their World Cup successes.
The English and Springboks, in 2003 and 2007 respectively, had campaigns they would rather forget in their first full seasons as World Cup champions.
Fox said that maintaining the All Blacks overall legacy, and continuing the chapter written at the World Cup, was a massive priority for McCaw.
"Richie is very determined to make sure this team builds on the legacy of the World Cup," Fox, one of three selectors alongside Steve Hansen and Ian Foster, said.
"He's well aware of other teams not going so well afterwards and we all know how inspirational his leadership is."
McCaw said he would lead from the front, and that if he, the coaches and senior members of the team did their job, then any concept of a World Cup hangover wouldn't be talked about.
"It comes down to the guys that lead it, the coach and the senior boys," McCaw said.
"If you have any sort of attitude that indicates maybe if we didn't do it right, it might be OK, that's where you're buggered. We've got to be on the job and get our attitudes dead right. We've got to make sure it's put behind us and it's what we do right now.
"Hopefully, if we get that attitude right from the start, it shouldn't even be worth talking about."
The All Blacks are set to launch their 2012 international season in front of a huge crowd at Eden Park on Saturday, the scene of their epic World Cup victory last year.
Ticket sales for the opening Test match of the three-Test series against Ireland hit the 40,000 mark on Wednesday.
New Zealand Rugby Union Chief Executive Steve Tew said after a longer than usual break from international rugby, the scene is set for an outstanding series in 2012.
"Tickets are selling fast so I urge fans to avoid being disappointed and act now to secure their seats for this great chance to see the All Blacks in action for the first time since that wonderful moment at Eden Park last October.
"New Zealanders love our rivalry and camaraderie with the Irish, and in Auckland, All Blacks v Ireland Test matches have traditionally drawn large crowds.
"Apart from their World Cup appearance last year, the Irish last played at Eden Park in 2006 in front of 44,000 people.
"The Irish bring passion and colour every time they play here, and on the back of an all-Irish European Cup final, they are not to be underestimated. We are looking forward to welcoming the Irish back to New Zealand and back to Eden Park," he said.
Sources: Newstalk ZB, NZRU & Fairfax Media
