Size not everything as All Blacks show their strength

Ireland have never beaten New Zealand in a test match, they of the haka and famed black kit. What makes the All Blacks different?

New Zealand’s record is nothing short of outstanding. In the last 10 years they’ve lost just three home tests while boasting a better record away from New Zealand than anyone else has managed at home. According to Betfair’s Barry Orr, it’s over three years since New Zealand went into a test match as an underdog.

“For me it’s their consistent execution of the basics”, said one current Irish international. A former international analyst put it like this: “They play in right part of the field and do their basics better. [It’s their] support play, passing, decision making and pace.”

Irish rugby has at times worried that their players are too small. South Africa are the current super-heavyweights of rugby union but they finished second to New Zealand in the Rugby Championship despite having a pack weighing over three kilos heavier per man.

New Zealand’s starting pack in the Rugby Championship decider weighed 892kg with an average height of 1.91m; their backs a total of 645kg at 1.82m. A reasonable punt at a probable Ireland autumn selection would see an Irish team weighing a kilo per man heavier than the All Blacks while being of slightly taller average height. The All Blacks are not giants, they’re just terrific at playing this game.

Kieran Read’s try in Ellis Park against South Africa in the Rugby Championship was a classic example of New Zealand playing simple, perfectly-executed rugby, as identified by analyst Scott Allen writing for Australian outlet The Roar.

Julian Savea and Kieran Read were attacking with just one defender, Willie Le Roux, between them and the tryline. The problem? There was so little space outside Savea that Read was actually running on the touchline. Read’s position as a forward is an irrelevance when discussing the All Blacks. “They have 15 ballplayers”, said Bernard Jackman, defence coach with Top 14 side Grenoble.

Savea adjusted his running line to come inside, drawing the defender, and a vital metre of space was opened up for Read on the outside to take the pass and score.

This simple draw and pass play is typical of New Zealand rugby. Conor McPhillips, Connacht’s performance analyst, said “they do the small, simple things consistently better than all other teams”.

Decision-making
On-field decision-making is a constant judgement of risk versus reward, continually asking the question “What is the best thing for me to do right now to ensure the optimal outcome for my team?”

That question is not one that can be consciously thought about in the heat of a test match. However, the process can be helped by finding as many answers as possible in advance. Where once having access to a video replay machine was the epitome of analytical sophistication rugby teams can now access swathes of data, usually bought from statistics houses like Opta.

Article source: http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/news/rugby-efficient-new-zealand-beat-combative-japan-tokyo-064620164--spt.html

Size not everything as All Blacks show their strength