Hot reception for cool Kiwis in BA
Kiwi coach Henry full of praise for Pumas
The All Blacks were warned to keep their cool in the face of what will be most likely the most hostile reception they will face at any away venue this year – when they face Argentina at the Velez Sarsfield stadium in Buenos Aires on Saturday.
All Black coach Graham Henry, who was full of praise for both the ability of the Pumas and their coach Marcello Loffreda, told his players that no other stadium in the world is as intimidating as this soccer venue, Velez Sarsfield.
He described the game as a "huge challenge" to his team.
"Argentina has just recorded two very good victories [over Wales] and they have shown remarkable improvement over the last few years," Henry told a media gathering in Buenos Aires.
"It is admirable the work that [Marcello] Loffreda did with The Pumas. He is a newcomer to the coach ranks and have made remarkable progress over the years. That is an amazing achievement if you consider that he does not have the same structures and doesn't often get to compete against the same quality opposition that others have."
But it is more the 46,000-strong sell-out crowd at the central city stadium that concerns Henry more, a crowd that knows how to raise the decibel levels.
In fact the Kiwis have been fed a diet of video clippings from the All Blacks' last visit to Buenos Aires – a fortuitous 24-20 win in 2001 – to ensure they are prepared for what awaits them.
"We cut out excerpts [of the Test] to show them," assistant coach Wayne Smith told the New Zealand Press Association.
"It's like a pre-mortem rather than a post-mortem. We use it to make [the players] aware of what they're in for."
The short video highlights raucous Argentinean fans and the noise levels they generate rather than the Pumas' actual style of play as the All Blacks prepare to play in a country where they have notched just a solitary convincing win.
In five matches played in the Argentine capital since 1985, the All Blacks' most emphatic margin was a 36-6 second Test triumph before the ill-fated 1991 World Cup campaign.
"I can't remember the last time an All Blacks team has played well here. It's always been a struggle," Smith said about the Kiwis record in Buenos Aires.
Henry admitted the All Blacks were fortunate to win in 2001.
"They were extremely lucky to win and we know we'll be up against it, too. We've had a look at that game so they know what to expect to some extent."
The benefit of home ground advantage is possibly no more evident than when the Pumas play before their faithful in this soccer-mad country.
How else, asked Smith, could the All Blacks cruise to a 67-19 win in Christchurch five years ago, yet six months later be pushed to the wire by a team backed by a 70,000-strong crowd?
"The crowd gives them a huge lift and the opposition is out of their comfort zone," explained Smith.
Smith said videos of other intimidating grounds, such as Marseille's Stade Velodrome in France and Pretoria's Loftus Versfeld, had also been shown to the uninitiated but Argentina was unique.
"We've had some pretty special moments in Aussie but in general these people will be jumping around, singing. There'll be crackers, toilet rolls … it's something special.
"The Aussies and the English aren't as engaged noise-wise and emotionally. They're not what you call hostile."
