Will Genia | The Sun-Herald’s Tri Nations Team Of The Tournament

The Sun-Herald and RugbyHeaven have combined to pick the best XV from the Tri Nations. New Zealand dominate with 11 positions while Richie McCaw has been moved to blindside to accommodate David Pocock and James O’Connor picked on the left wing.

15. Mils Muliaina (New Zealand)14. Cory Jane (New Zealand)13. Conrad Smith (New Zealand)12. Ma’a Nonu (New Zealand)11. James O’Connor (Australia)10. Dan Carter (New Zealand)9. Will Genia (Australia)8. Kieren Read (New Zealand)7. David Pocock (Australia)6. Richie McCaw (New Zealand)5. Nathan Sharpe (Australia)4. Brad Thorn (New Zealand)3. Owen Franks (New Zealand)2. Keven Mealamu (New Zealand)1. Tony Woodcock (New Zealand)

Will Genia | All Black ‘character’ Decisive, Says Henry

New Zealand scored two tries in the last 15 minutes to defeat Australia 23-22 on Saturday and sweep the Tri-Nations championship with a record 10th consecutive victory over the Wallabies.

Unrelenting forward pressure after Australia had taken a 22-9 lead into the last quarter resulted in Richie McCaw scampering over the line in the 66th minute. McCaw was playing in his 52nd test as All Blacks skipper to surpass the previous record holder Sean Fitzpatrick.

No 8 Kieran Read barged over the line minutes later and Piri Weepu, laser-accurate all night, converted to put the All Blacks a point up with six minutes left and stun the greater part of the 70,000-plus fans at the Olympic Stadium.

The All Blacks defended stoutly in the final minutes to seal their sixth Tri-Nations victory this year and emerge as the first undefeated team since the southern hemisphere tournament expanded by two matches for each side in 2006.

The loss left Australia with two wins from six starts in the Tri-Nations and time to rue yet another game conceded from a strong position. “Character, character, character. First, second and third,” a beaming New Zealand coach Graham Henry said. “We were pretty rusty initially. When you have a break for a few weeks you get a bit of rust. We had a few new guys who hadn’t played a lot of test matches as well.

“The guys just showed great character and just hung in there and got better as the game went on and pulled it out of the fire.”

Australia, as has often been the case against their archi-rivals, started the brighter of the two sides and took a 14-6 lead at the break. After Weepu posted the first score with a penalty goal in the third minute, winger Lachie Turner was denied a dream return to the Wallabies’ lineup minutes later when his try at the left corner was disallowed by video review after he appeared to clip the sideline.

Number eight Ben McCalman snatched the ball out of the ruck then capitalised on rare disorganisation in the All Blacks’ defence to set up winger James O’Connor for the Wallabies’ first try.

Matt Giteau slotted his third penalty at the stroke of halftime to give the Wallabies an eight-point lead at the break but sprayed a number of others.

Despite Giteau’s profligacy, the Wallabies raised hopes of ending their grim losing streak when Will Genia set up Adam Ashley-Cooper for the Wallabies’ second try after the break. The scrum-half combined with Quade Cooper to rattle the All Blacks’ defence before sending a long pass to Ashley-Cooper who feinted a hand-off before charging over to put the Wallabies up 19-6.

Full-back Kurtley Beale took over kicking duties after Giteau missed his second conversion chance and succeeded with a long-range penalty to extend the lead to 22-9.

McCaw, however, turned the game around and the Wallabies began to fumble and miss passes as the All Blacks’ pressure took its toll in the final quarter. At the end of a fierce barrages of drives, Read had the second try and Weepu slotted his second conversion to finish with three penalty goals and 13 points in a perfect display.

Having dominated possession for most of the night, the toll of the Wallabies’ trip to South Africa the previous week appeared to tell. The All Blacks charged home to post their 15th consecutive win and surpass the sides who notched nine in a row against the Wallabies from 1936-1947.

Will Genia | All Blacks: Weepu The Late ‘revelation’

A coach’s report on Piri Weepu would be a fascinating dossier.

The All Black halfback is a potpourri of characteristics, a player with a huge range of skills which intersect with his emotions to create varying levels of performance.

He accepts that he sometimes sulks when things don’t go his way, but says he’s learned to fight much harder than he did in the past.

Talks with the All Black panel have helped, and becoming a father to Kiera seven weeks ago has also mellowed the All Black halfback. His fitness has improved, so too his play.

It wasn’t like that midway through the Super 14. Coach Colin Cooper dropped him to the Hurricanes bench and Weepu’s All Black chances were sliding.

But he got through a few personal issues, reset his goals and gathered a support group who would help push him towards those targets.

It was close. He made the All Blacks as much on reputation as anything. Then the coaches saw his effort. They knew all about his skills, but they wanted more dedication. Weepu made the deal.

“He has been impressive,” assistant Wayne Smith said. “He showed he wants to be there and he needs to keep going. There are lots of things involved in helping him reach his potential. He has to work hard, he’s been great, he’s been a revelation really.”

Weepu has shared the starting duties with Jimmy Cowan this season and gets his third Tri-Nations start tonight in Sydney.

He’s part of a heavy Hurricanes influence in the backline and like young five-eighths Aaron Cruden will get confidence from that familiarity.

He also got a boost when the All Blacks coaches came calling about his Super 14 form slump.

“Everything had to change for me then and as soon as I got the nod I knew I was in the right frame of mind to be positive with everything that I do,” he said.

“I had to pick myself up and turn my season round rather than playing the way I’d been playing and dropping my lip.

“Talking to the coaches turned everything round for myself and I knew that I could be involved in this team as long as I got my attitude right.

“I had a few issues I needed to deal with outside rugby and those I dealt with and everything came right for myself then.”

He and Cowan have job-shared, the only differences in job description, joked Weepu, being the warm-up routines while the reserve also got a chance to survey the action and trends.

He started the last test against the Wallabies in Christchurch, hoped to get this one in Sydney too but doesn’t want to increase the pressure on himself before kickoff.

Weepu’s life was in better balance, coach Graham Henry felt.

“He’s a gifted footballer and can see things others can’t. But it’s a continual challenge for him to be in good shape, more than most of the others in the group.”

But Weepu had made huge advances since being picked in June, Henry said, and needed to push on to the end-of-year tour.

One of tonight’s tasks will be to nurture Cruden. Not babysit, but assist when he wants and needs help.

They worked a lot this week on calls, timing and the nuances of the All Blacks style.

“He has to learn how to play the game somehow so we can’t mollycoddle him too much and this will be a great day for him as long as we give him the guidance to play well,” Weepu said. “Everyone makes mistakes. We can’t get down on ourselves, we just have to brush it off and move on to the next job.

“We can’t dwell on that sort of thing throughout a game otherwise your game will unravel so it is just trying to build confidence and get around him and give him a boost.”

Confidence is a large part of Weepu’s rollercoaster rugby career.

If he and his teammates are in sync with the game plan it boosts his form, it gives him the impetus to express himself and ride out the rough patches that occur in every test.

Claiming a Tri-Nations clean sweep tonight would be a special target. The All Blacks had shown the world a new way of adapting to the game’s cluster of laws.

Their winning run had created a strong team environment but they needed to complete that Tri-Nations campaign.

Weepu will face off against Will Genia, the inventive Wallaby halfback who has added extra dimensions to his side.

He and Quade Cooper were a sparky combination, said Weepu, with attacking instincts to test any defences. “Will is going to be a major threat and being able to contain him at source would help.

“If you shut him down he might go into his shell, we can then build pressure on him but we need to watch him closely.”

Will Genia | All Black ‘character’ Decisive, Says Henry

New Zealand scored two tries in the last 15 minutes to defeat Australia 23-22 on Saturday and sweep the Tri-Nations championship with a record 10th consecutive victory over the Wallabies.

Unrelenting forward pressure after Australia had taken a 22-9 lead into the last quarter resulted in Richie McCaw scampering over the line in the 66th minute. McCaw was playing in his 52nd test as All Blacks skipper to surpass the previous record holder Sean Fitzpatrick.

No 8 Kieran Read barged over the line minutes later and Piri Weepu, laser-accurate all night, converted to put the All Blacks a point up with six minutes left and stun the greater part of the 70,000-plus fans at the Olympic Stadium.

The All Blacks defended stoutly in the final minutes to seal their sixth Tri-Nations victory this year and emerge as the first undefeated team since the southern hemisphere tournament expanded by two matches for each side in 2006.

The loss left Australia with two wins from six starts in the Tri-Nations and time to rue yet another game conceded from a strong position. “Character, character, character. First, second and third,” a beaming New Zealand coach Graham Henry said. “We were pretty rusty initially. When you have a break for a few weeks you get a bit of rust. We had a few new guys who hadn’t played a lot of test matches as well.

“The guys just showed great character and just hung in there and got better as the game went on and pulled it out of the fire.”

Australia, as has often been the case against their archi-rivals, started the brighter of the two sides and took a 14-6 lead at the break. After Weepu posted the first score with a penalty goal in the third minute, winger Lachie Turner was denied a dream return to the Wallabies’ lineup minutes later when his try at the left corner was disallowed by video review after he appeared to clip the sideline.

Number eight Ben McCalman snatched the ball out of the ruck then capitalised on rare disorganisation in the All Blacks’ defence to set up winger James O’Connor for the Wallabies’ first try.

Matt Giteau slotted his third penalty at the stroke of halftime to give the Wallabies an eight-point lead at the break but sprayed a number of others.

Despite Giteau’s profligacy, the Wallabies raised hopes of ending their grim losing streak when Will Genia set up Adam Ashley-Cooper for the Wallabies’ second try after the break. The scrum-half combined with Quade Cooper to rattle the All Blacks’ defence before sending a long pass to Ashley-Cooper who feinted a hand-off before charging over to put the Wallabies up 19-6.

Full-back Kurtley Beale took over kicking duties after Giteau missed his second conversion chance and succeeded with a long-range penalty to extend the lead to 22-9.

McCaw, however, turned the game around and the Wallabies began to fumble and miss passes as the All Blacks’ pressure took its toll in the final quarter. At the end of a fierce barrages of drives, Read had the second try and Weepu slotted his second conversion to finish with three penalty goals and 13 points in a perfect display.

Having dominated possession for most of the night, the toll of the Wallabies’ trip to South Africa the previous week appeared to tell. The All Blacks charged home to post their 15th consecutive win and surpass the sides who notched nine in a row against the Wallabies from 1936-1947.

Will Genia | All Blacks: Weepu The Late ‘revelation’

A coach’s report on Piri Weepu would be a fascinating dossier.

The All Black halfback is a potpourri of characteristics, a player with a huge range of skills which intersect with his emotions to create varying levels of performance.

He accepts that he sometimes sulks when things don’t go his way, but says he’s learned to fight much harder than he did in the past.

Talks with the All Black panel have helped, and becoming a father to Kiera seven weeks ago has also mellowed the All Black halfback. His fitness has improved, so too his play.

It wasn’t like that midway through the Super 14. Coach Colin Cooper dropped him to the Hurricanes bench and Weepu’s All Black chances were sliding.

But he got through a few personal issues, reset his goals and gathered a support group who would help push him towards those targets.

It was close. He made the All Blacks as much on reputation as anything. Then the coaches saw his effort. They knew all about his skills, but they wanted more dedication. Weepu made the deal.

“He has been impressive,” assistant Wayne Smith said. “He showed he wants to be there and he needs to keep going. There are lots of things involved in helping him reach his potential. He has to work hard, he’s been great, he’s been a revelation really.”

Weepu has shared the starting duties with Jimmy Cowan this season and gets his third Tri-Nations start tonight in Sydney.

He’s part of a heavy Hurricanes influence in the backline and like young five-eighths Aaron Cruden will get confidence from that familiarity.

He also got a boost when the All Blacks coaches came calling about his Super 14 form slump.

“Everything had to change for me then and as soon as I got the nod I knew I was in the right frame of mind to be positive with everything that I do,” he said.

“I had to pick myself up and turn my season round rather than playing the way I’d been playing and dropping my lip.

“Talking to the coaches turned everything round for myself and I knew that I could be involved in this team as long as I got my attitude right.

“I had a few issues I needed to deal with outside rugby and those I dealt with and everything came right for myself then.”

He and Cowan have job-shared, the only differences in job description, joked Weepu, being the warm-up routines while the reserve also got a chance to survey the action and trends.

He started the last test against the Wallabies in Christchurch, hoped to get this one in Sydney too but doesn’t want to increase the pressure on himself before kickoff.

Weepu’s life was in better balance, coach Graham Henry felt.

“He’s a gifted footballer and can see things others can’t. But it’s a continual challenge for him to be in good shape, more than most of the others in the group.”

But Weepu had made huge advances since being picked in June, Henry said, and needed to push on to the end-of-year tour.

One of tonight’s tasks will be to nurture Cruden. Not babysit, but assist when he wants and needs help.

They worked a lot this week on calls, timing and the nuances of the All Blacks style.

“He has to learn how to play the game somehow so we can’t mollycoddle him too much and this will be a great day for him as long as we give him the guidance to play well,” Weepu said. “Everyone makes mistakes. We can’t get down on ourselves, we just have to brush it off and move on to the next job.

“We can’t dwell on that sort of thing throughout a game otherwise your game will unravel so it is just trying to build confidence and get around him and give him a boost.”

Confidence is a large part of Weepu’s rollercoaster rugby career.

If he and his teammates are in sync with the game plan it boosts his form, it gives him the impetus to express himself and ride out the rough patches that occur in every test.

Claiming a Tri-Nations clean sweep tonight would be a special target. The All Blacks had shown the world a new way of adapting to the game’s cluster of laws.

Their winning run had created a strong team environment but they needed to complete that Tri-Nations campaign.

Weepu will face off against Will Genia, the inventive Wallaby halfback who has added extra dimensions to his side.

He and Quade Cooper were a sparky combination, said Weepu, with attacking instincts to test any defences. “Will is going to be a major threat and being able to contain him at source would help.

“If you shut him down he might go into his shell, we can then build pressure on him but we need to watch him closely.”

Will Genia | All Blacks: Team Of The Tri-Nations

A conference of Sanzar selectors would struggle to include many Springboks and Wallabies ahead of the All Blacks in a composite Tri-Nations side.

Both sides finished well adrift of the All Blacks, who won all six of their tests and showed a new pedigree and grit to outlast their rivals at home and abroad.

Wing, halfback and lock would be the only three positions where the Boks and Wallabies would mount a selection challenge.

The unluckiest player to miss out would be David Pocock, the influential openside flanker for the Wallabies who has taken over in such fine fashion from George Smith. But even though Pocock is all class, his talents do not yet match those of Richie McCaw.

1. Loosehead prop: Tony Woodcock Still think Tony Woodcock has more but he cannot be shifted in the scrums and is ticking over some new areas in the loose. Next test will be number 70. The man has experience, strength and clout in bulk.

2. Hooker: Keven Mealamu It seemed Keven Mealamu was heading for the permanent subs role until the law changes this season and the shoulder injury to Andrew Hore. Mealamu started all nine tests this year, surged through the Tri-Nations where his pick ‘n’ go forays, outside his core setpiece duties, were an extra weapon in the All Black arsenal.

Only 12 tests shy of Fitzy’s record now – remarkable for a onetime flanker.

3. Tighthead prop: Owen Franks Still has some way to go – but what 22-year-old wouldn’t? Makes Ma’afu look weary, CJ van der Linde, BJ Botha and Jannie du Plessis just ordinary, as he does his core work and then rolls up his sleeves for openfield combat. Rugged defender, big work-rate, huge ticker.

4. Lock: Brad Thorn The Ironman continues his remarkable second – or is that third – sporting life with the All Blacks. Has played 46 tests and is going as hard as he did on debut. Added a few neat touches to his relentless power and blowtorch work in the tight five.

5. Lock: Victor Matfield He may not be at his peerless best but his lineout work is still class, he reads a game extra well, massages referees – and can produce sharp moments like his chip and regather against the Wallabies. Heads off the variable Sharpe and novicey Donnelly.

6. Blindside flanker: Jerome Kaino The bloke who was first taken on an All Black tour six years and has taken a long time to blossom. But he has, and his combo with Read and McCaw is a major strength for the All Blacks. Has played 33 tests and showed his clout to help galvanise the Sydney comeback when he replaced Vito.

7. Openside flanker: Richie McCaw Who else but the indomitable workhorse who continues to add layers of skill to his game and levels to his leadership? Had strong tussles with Pocock who is the comer while Schalk Burger matches him for courage and grit – but not on the technical front.

8. No 8: Kieran Read Continues his upward shift in international pedigree. Running plays, leading the defensive line or tidying up, Read is becoming an all-round rugby package, taking the position to another level after the long and valued service from Rodney So’oialo.

9. Halfback: Francois Hougaard A halfback who is usually dispatched to the wing at the Bulls when Fourie du Preez is around, Hougaard was inventive, brisk, combative and sharp. He sniped and varied his game more than Piri Weepu, Jimmy Cowan or Will Genia. Some Bok backup.

10. First five: Daniel Carter DC then a huge gap. Carter was fluid, controlled and brilliant, all the traits you would expect from the backline director. He was belted, though, by Morne Steyn and shaded by Matt Giteau in goalkicking, his stats showing an unusually low 63.9 per cent success rate. No DC in Sydney: it showed.

11. Left wing: Joe Rokocoko May not be at the apex of his brilliance but he was powerful, reliable and constructive in his four tests. Certainly better than an insipid Bryan Habana and more consistent than an erratic Drew Mitchell. Always demanded defensive attention, which opened up room for others.

12. Second five: Ma’a Nonu Banged up in June, Nonu was the midfield rock in the next six tests. His interaction with Carter and Smith continues to grow, his ball-carrying is still devastating, passing far more secure – and his options are much stronger. He is a constant threat.

13. Centre: Conrad Smith Seemed to be mistake-free until the last test in Sydney. He has been so sure, few teams have tried to attack his defensive channel – until Beale gassed him. Before that he was a smooth blend of creative and defensive clout – a strong organiser with great supporting instincts.

14. Right wing: Cory Jane This bloke continues to amaze. He prefers fullback but has created an expanded template for the wings, which others such as Israel Dagg have been emulating. Strong on cover, instinctive, inventive and refreshing.

15. Fullback: Mils Muliaina Was in grand touch throughout; his certainty under the high ball, counterattack and defensive organisation, a great riposte to those who wondered what shape he would return to the game in after a lengthy absence with a thumb injury.

Will Genia | All Blacks: Weepu The Late ‘revelation’

A coach’s report on Piri Weepu would be a fascinating dossier.

The All Black halfback is a potpourri of characteristics, a player with a huge range of skills which intersect with his emotions to create varying levels of performance.

He accepts that he sometimes sulks when things don’t go his way, but says he’s learned to fight much harder than he did in the past.

Talks with the All Black panel have helped, and becoming a father to Kiera seven weeks ago has also mellowed the All Black halfback. His fitness has improved, so too his play.

It wasn’t like that midway through the Super 14. Coach Colin Cooper dropped him to the Hurricanes bench and Weepu’s All Black chances were sliding.

But he got through a few personal issues, reset his goals and gathered a support group who would help push him towards those targets.

It was close. He made the All Blacks as much on reputation as anything. Then the coaches saw his effort. They knew all about his skills, but they wanted more dedication. Weepu made the deal.

“He has been impressive,” assistant Wayne Smith said. “He showed he wants to be there and he needs to keep going. There are lots of things involved in helping him reach his potential. He has to work hard, he’s been great, he’s been a revelation really.”

Weepu has shared the starting duties with Jimmy Cowan this season and gets his third Tri-Nations start tonight in Sydney.

He’s part of a heavy Hurricanes influence in the backline and like young five-eighths Aaron Cruden will get confidence from that familiarity.

He also got a boost when the All Blacks coaches came calling about his Super 14 form slump.

“Everything had to change for me then and as soon as I got the nod I knew I was in the right frame of mind to be positive with everything that I do,” he said.

“I had to pick myself up and turn my season round rather than playing the way I’d been playing and dropping my lip.

“Talking to the coaches turned everything round for myself and I knew that I could be involved in this team as long as I got my attitude right.

“I had a few issues I needed to deal with outside rugby and those I dealt with and everything came right for myself then.”

He and Cowan have job-shared, the only differences in job description, joked Weepu, being the warm-up routines while the reserve also got a chance to survey the action and trends.

He started the last test against the Wallabies in Christchurch, hoped to get this one in Sydney too but doesn’t want to increase the pressure on himself before kickoff.

Weepu’s life was in better balance, coach Graham Henry felt.

“He’s a gifted footballer and can see things others can’t. But it’s a continual challenge for him to be in good shape, more than most of the others in the group.”

But Weepu had made huge advances since being picked in June, Henry said, and needed to push on to the end-of-year tour.

One of tonight’s tasks will be to nurture Cruden. Not babysit, but assist when he wants and needs help.

They worked a lot this week on calls, timing and the nuances of the All Blacks style.

“He has to learn how to play the game somehow so we can’t mollycoddle him too much and this will be a great day for him as long as we give him the guidance to play well,” Weepu said. “Everyone makes mistakes. We can’t get down on ourselves, we just have to brush it off and move on to the next job.

“We can’t dwell on that sort of thing throughout a game otherwise your game will unravel so it is just trying to build confidence and get around him and give him a boost.”

Confidence is a large part of Weepu’s rollercoaster rugby career.

If he and his teammates are in sync with the game plan it boosts his form, it gives him the impetus to express himself and ride out the rough patches that occur in every test.

Claiming a Tri-Nations clean sweep tonight would be a special target. The All Blacks had shown the world a new way of adapting to the game’s cluster of laws.

Their winning run had created a strong team environment but they needed to complete that Tri-Nations campaign.

Weepu will face off against Will Genia, the inventive Wallaby halfback who has added extra dimensions to his side.

He and Quade Cooper were a sparky combination, said Weepu, with attacking instincts to test any defences. “Will is going to be a major threat and being able to contain him at source would help.

“If you shut him down he might go into his shell, we can then build pressure on him but we need to watch him closely.”

Will Genia | All Black ‘character’ Decisive, Says Henry

New Zealand scored two tries in the last 15 minutes to defeat Australia 23-22 on Saturday and sweep the Tri-Nations championship with a record 10th consecutive victory over the Wallabies.

Unrelenting forward pressure after Australia had taken a 22-9 lead into the last quarter resulted in Richie McCaw scampering over the line in the 66th minute. McCaw was playing in his 52nd test as All Blacks skipper to surpass the previous record holder Sean Fitzpatrick.

No 8 Kieran Read barged over the line minutes later and Piri Weepu, laser-accurate all night, converted to put the All Blacks a point up with six minutes left and stun the greater part of the 70,000-plus fans at the Olympic Stadium.

The All Blacks defended stoutly in the final minutes to seal their sixth Tri-Nations victory this year and emerge as the first undefeated team since the southern hemisphere tournament expanded by two matches for each side in 2006.

The loss left Australia with two wins from six starts in the Tri-Nations and time to rue yet another game conceded from a strong position. “Character, character, character. First, second and third,” a beaming New Zealand coach Graham Henry said. “We were pretty rusty initially. When you have a break for a few weeks you get a bit of rust. We had a few new guys who hadn’t played a lot of test matches as well.

“The guys just showed great character and just hung in there and got better as the game went on and pulled it out of the fire.”

Australia, as has often been the case against their archi-rivals, started the brighter of the two sides and took a 14-6 lead at the break. After Weepu posted the first score with a penalty goal in the third minute, winger Lachie Turner was denied a dream return to the Wallabies’ lineup minutes later when his try at the left corner was disallowed by video review after he appeared to clip the sideline.

Number eight Ben McCalman snatched the ball out of the ruck then capitalised on rare disorganisation in the All Blacks’ defence to set up winger James O’Connor for the Wallabies’ first try.

Matt Giteau slotted his third penalty at the stroke of halftime to give the Wallabies an eight-point lead at the break but sprayed a number of others.

Despite Giteau’s profligacy, the Wallabies raised hopes of ending their grim losing streak when Will Genia set up Adam Ashley-Cooper for the Wallabies’ second try after the break. The scrum-half combined with Quade Cooper to rattle the All Blacks’ defence before sending a long pass to Ashley-Cooper who feinted a hand-off before charging over to put the Wallabies up 19-6.

Full-back Kurtley Beale took over kicking duties after Giteau missed his second conversion chance and succeeded with a long-range penalty to extend the lead to 22-9.

McCaw, however, turned the game around and the Wallabies began to fumble and miss passes as the All Blacks’ pressure took its toll in the final quarter. At the end of a fierce barrages of drives, Read had the second try and Weepu slotted his second conversion to finish with three penalty goals and 13 points in a perfect display.

Having dominated possession for most of the night, the toll of the Wallabies’ trip to South Africa the previous week appeared to tell. The All Blacks charged home to post their 15th consecutive win and surpass the sides who notched nine in a row against the Wallabies from 1936-1947.

Will Genia | The Sun-Herald’s Tri Nations Team Of The Tournament

The Sun-Herald and RugbyHeaven have combined to pick the best XV from the Tri Nations. New Zealand dominate with 11 positions while Richie McCaw has been moved to blindside to accommodate David Pocock and James O’Connor picked on the left wing.

15. Mils Muliaina (New Zealand)14. Cory Jane (New Zealand)13. Conrad Smith (New Zealand)12. Ma’a Nonu (New Zealand)11. James O’Connor (Australia)10. Dan Carter (New Zealand)9. Will Genia (Australia)8. Kieren Read (New Zealand)7. David Pocock (Australia)6. Richie McCaw (New Zealand)5. Nathan Sharpe (Australia)4. Brad Thorn (New Zealand)3. Owen Franks (New Zealand)2. Keven Mealamu (New Zealand)1. Tony Woodcock (New Zealand)

Will Genia | All Blacks: Team Of The Tri-Nations

A conference of Sanzar selectors would struggle to include many Springboks and Wallabies ahead of the All Blacks in a composite Tri-Nations side.

Both sides finished well adrift of the All Blacks, who won all six of their tests and showed a new pedigree and grit to outlast their rivals at home and abroad.

Wing, halfback and lock would be the only three positions where the Boks and Wallabies would mount a selection challenge.

The unluckiest player to miss out would be David Pocock, the influential openside flanker for the Wallabies who has taken over in such fine fashion from George Smith. But even though Pocock is all class, his talents do not yet match those of Richie McCaw.

1. Loosehead prop: Tony Woodcock Still think Tony Woodcock has more but he cannot be shifted in the scrums and is ticking over some new areas in the loose. Next test will be number 70. The man has experience, strength and clout in bulk.

2. Hooker: Keven Mealamu It seemed Keven Mealamu was heading for the permanent subs role until the law changes this season and the shoulder injury to Andrew Hore. Mealamu started all nine tests this year, surged through the Tri-Nations where his pick ‘n’ go forays, outside his core setpiece duties, were an extra weapon in the All Black arsenal.

Only 12 tests shy of Fitzy’s record now – remarkable for a onetime flanker.

3. Tighthead prop: Owen Franks Still has some way to go – but what 22-year-old wouldn’t? Makes Ma’afu look weary, CJ van der Linde, BJ Botha and Jannie du Plessis just ordinary, as he does his core work and then rolls up his sleeves for openfield combat. Rugged defender, big work-rate, huge ticker.

4. Lock: Brad Thorn The Ironman continues his remarkable second – or is that third – sporting life with the All Blacks. Has played 46 tests and is going as hard as he did on debut. Added a few neat touches to his relentless power and blowtorch work in the tight five.

5. Lock: Victor Matfield He may not be at his peerless best but his lineout work is still class, he reads a game extra well, massages referees – and can produce sharp moments like his chip and regather against the Wallabies. Heads off the variable Sharpe and novicey Donnelly.

6. Blindside flanker: Jerome Kaino The bloke who was first taken on an All Black tour six years and has taken a long time to blossom. But he has, and his combo with Read and McCaw is a major strength for the All Blacks. Has played 33 tests and showed his clout to help galvanise the Sydney comeback when he replaced Vito.

7. Openside flanker: Richie McCaw Who else but the indomitable workhorse who continues to add layers of skill to his game and levels to his leadership? Had strong tussles with Pocock who is the comer while Schalk Burger matches him for courage and grit – but not on the technical front.

8. No 8: Kieran Read Continues his upward shift in international pedigree. Running plays, leading the defensive line or tidying up, Read is becoming an all-round rugby package, taking the position to another level after the long and valued service from Rodney So’oialo.

9. Halfback: Francois Hougaard A halfback who is usually dispatched to the wing at the Bulls when Fourie du Preez is around, Hougaard was inventive, brisk, combative and sharp. He sniped and varied his game more than Piri Weepu, Jimmy Cowan or Will Genia. Some Bok backup.

10. First five: Daniel Carter DC then a huge gap. Carter was fluid, controlled and brilliant, all the traits you would expect from the backline director. He was belted, though, by Morne Steyn and shaded by Matt Giteau in goalkicking, his stats showing an unusually low 63.9 per cent success rate. No DC in Sydney: it showed.

11. Left wing: Joe Rokocoko May not be at the apex of his brilliance but he was powerful, reliable and constructive in his four tests. Certainly better than an insipid Bryan Habana and more consistent than an erratic Drew Mitchell. Always demanded defensive attention, which opened up room for others.

12. Second five: Ma’a Nonu Banged up in June, Nonu was the midfield rock in the next six tests. His interaction with Carter and Smith continues to grow, his ball-carrying is still devastating, passing far more secure – and his options are much stronger. He is a constant threat.

13. Centre: Conrad Smith Seemed to be mistake-free until the last test in Sydney. He has been so sure, few teams have tried to attack his defensive channel – until Beale gassed him. Before that he was a smooth blend of creative and defensive clout – a strong organiser with great supporting instincts.

14. Right wing: Cory Jane This bloke continues to amaze. He prefers fullback but has created an expanded template for the wings, which others such as Israel Dagg have been emulating. Strong on cover, instinctive, inventive and refreshing.

15. Fullback: Mils Muliaina Was in grand touch throughout; his certainty under the high ball, counterattack and defensive organisation, a great riposte to those who wondered what shape he would return to the game in after a lengthy absence with a thumb injury.

Will Genia | All Black ‘character’ Decisive, Says Henry

New Zealand scored two tries in the last 15 minutes to defeat Australia 23-22 on Saturday and sweep the Tri-Nations championship with a record 10th consecutive victory over the Wallabies.

Unrelenting forward pressure after Australia had taken a 22-9 lead into the last quarter resulted in Richie McCaw scampering over the line in the 66th minute. McCaw was playing in his 52nd test as All Blacks skipper to surpass the previous record holder Sean Fitzpatrick.

No 8 Kieran Read barged over the line minutes later and Piri Weepu, laser-accurate all night, converted to put the All Blacks a point up with six minutes left and stun the greater part of the 70,000-plus fans at the Olympic Stadium.

The All Blacks defended stoutly in the final minutes to seal their sixth Tri-Nations victory this year and emerge as the first undefeated team since the southern hemisphere tournament expanded by two matches for each side in 2006.

The loss left Australia with two wins from six starts in the Tri-Nations and time to rue yet another game conceded from a strong position. “Character, character, character. First, second and third,” a beaming New Zealand coach Graham Henry said. “We were pretty rusty initially. When you have a break for a few weeks you get a bit of rust. We had a few new guys who hadn’t played a lot of test matches as well.

“The guys just showed great character and just hung in there and got better as the game went on and pulled it out of the fire.”

Australia, as has often been the case against their archi-rivals, started the brighter of the two sides and took a 14-6 lead at the break. After Weepu posted the first score with a penalty goal in the third minute, winger Lachie Turner was denied a dream return to the Wallabies’ lineup minutes later when his try at the left corner was disallowed by video review after he appeared to clip the sideline.

Number eight Ben McCalman snatched the ball out of the ruck then capitalised on rare disorganisation in the All Blacks’ defence to set up winger James O’Connor for the Wallabies’ first try.

Matt Giteau slotted his third penalty at the stroke of halftime to give the Wallabies an eight-point lead at the break but sprayed a number of others.

Despite Giteau’s profligacy, the Wallabies raised hopes of ending their grim losing streak when Will Genia set up Adam Ashley-Cooper for the Wallabies’ second try after the break. The scrum-half combined with Quade Cooper to rattle the All Blacks’ defence before sending a long pass to Ashley-Cooper who feinted a hand-off before charging over to put the Wallabies up 19-6.

Full-back Kurtley Beale took over kicking duties after Giteau missed his second conversion chance and succeeded with a long-range penalty to extend the lead to 22-9.

McCaw, however, turned the game around and the Wallabies began to fumble and miss passes as the All Blacks’ pressure took its toll in the final quarter. At the end of a fierce barrages of drives, Read had the second try and Weepu slotted his second conversion to finish with three penalty goals and 13 points in a perfect display.

Having dominated possession for most of the night, the toll of the Wallabies’ trip to South Africa the previous week appeared to tell. The All Blacks charged home to post their 15th consecutive win and surpass the sides who notched nine in a row against the Wallabies from 1936-1947.

Will Genia | All Blacks: Weepu The Late ‘revelation’

A coach’s report on Piri Weepu would be a fascinating dossier.

The All Black halfback is a potpourri of characteristics, a player with a huge range of skills which intersect with his emotions to create varying levels of performance.

He accepts that he sometimes sulks when things don’t go his way, but says he’s learned to fight much harder than he did in the past.

Talks with the All Black panel have helped, and becoming a father to Kiera seven weeks ago has also mellowed the All Black halfback. His fitness has improved, so too his play.

It wasn’t like that midway through the Super 14. Coach Colin Cooper dropped him to the Hurricanes bench and Weepu’s All Black chances were sliding.

But he got through a few personal issues, reset his goals and gathered a support group who would help push him towards those targets.

It was close. He made the All Blacks as much on reputation as anything. Then the coaches saw his effort. They knew all about his skills, but they wanted more dedication. Weepu made the deal.

“He has been impressive,” assistant Wayne Smith said. “He showed he wants to be there and he needs to keep going. There are lots of things involved in helping him reach his potential. He has to work hard, he’s been great, he’s been a revelation really.”

Weepu has shared the starting duties with Jimmy Cowan this season and gets his third Tri-Nations start tonight in Sydney.

He’s part of a heavy Hurricanes influence in the backline and like young five-eighths Aaron Cruden will get confidence from that familiarity.

He also got a boost when the All Blacks coaches came calling about his Super 14 form slump.

“Everything had to change for me then and as soon as I got the nod I knew I was in the right frame of mind to be positive with everything that I do,” he said.

“I had to pick myself up and turn my season round rather than playing the way I’d been playing and dropping my lip.

“Talking to the coaches turned everything round for myself and I knew that I could be involved in this team as long as I got my attitude right.

“I had a few issues I needed to deal with outside rugby and those I dealt with and everything came right for myself then.”

He and Cowan have job-shared, the only differences in job description, joked Weepu, being the warm-up routines while the reserve also got a chance to survey the action and trends.

He started the last test against the Wallabies in Christchurch, hoped to get this one in Sydney too but doesn’t want to increase the pressure on himself before kickoff.

Weepu’s life was in better balance, coach Graham Henry felt.

“He’s a gifted footballer and can see things others can’t. But it’s a continual challenge for him to be in good shape, more than most of the others in the group.”

But Weepu had made huge advances since being picked in June, Henry said, and needed to push on to the end-of-year tour.

One of tonight’s tasks will be to nurture Cruden. Not babysit, but assist when he wants and needs help.

They worked a lot this week on calls, timing and the nuances of the All Blacks style.

“He has to learn how to play the game somehow so we can’t mollycoddle him too much and this will be a great day for him as long as we give him the guidance to play well,” Weepu said. “Everyone makes mistakes. We can’t get down on ourselves, we just have to brush it off and move on to the next job.

“We can’t dwell on that sort of thing throughout a game otherwise your game will unravel so it is just trying to build confidence and get around him and give him a boost.”

Confidence is a large part of Weepu’s rollercoaster rugby career.

If he and his teammates are in sync with the game plan it boosts his form, it gives him the impetus to express himself and ride out the rough patches that occur in every test.

Claiming a Tri-Nations clean sweep tonight would be a special target. The All Blacks had shown the world a new way of adapting to the game’s cluster of laws.

Their winning run had created a strong team environment but they needed to complete that Tri-Nations campaign.

Weepu will face off against Will Genia, the inventive Wallaby halfback who has added extra dimensions to his side.

He and Quade Cooper were a sparky combination, said Weepu, with attacking instincts to test any defences. “Will is going to be a major threat and being able to contain him at source would help.

“If you shut him down he might go into his shell, we can then build pressure on him but we need to watch him closely.”

Will Genia | Carter’s Absence Gives Wallabies Hope As All Blacks Seek Perfect 10

New Zealand have already regained the Tri-Nations title and retained the Bledisloe Cup, yet again, but there’s no chance they’ll take it easy against Australia today with a record on the line. The All Blacks have beaten the Wallabies in nine straight tests, equalling their run in trans-Tasman rugby union Tests between 1936 and 1947.

The All Blacks coach, Graham Henry, has made five changes to the line-up which beat South Africa 29-22 in Soweto last month to clinch the Tri-Nations, but the pursuit of a 10th consecutive victory over Australia is still a big motivation.

In the major change, injured playmaker Dan Carter will be replaced by Aaron Cruden at fly-half. Israel Dagg, Victor Vito, Piri Weepu and Owen Franks have all come into the starting line-up for Joe Rokocoko, Jerome Kaino, Jimmy Cowan and Ben Franks.

The absence of Carter could give Australia a slight tactical advantage, as could the home support in Sydney, with the irrepressible Quade Cooper starting a Bledisloe Cup for the first time and facing an inexperienced Cruden rather than a rampant Carter.

Cooper was suspended for a dangerous tackle in Australia’s opening win over South Africa. Queensland and Australia halves partner Will Genia said the Wallabies missed his creativity. “Hopefully he can bring that to the game on Saturday,” Genia said. “Dan Carter is massive for them. They’re going to have to change the way they play a little bit because he controls their game so well.”

The Wallabies haven’t beaten New Zealand since Robbie Deans’ first Test in charge. The nine losses since then have added pressure on Deans, a former All Blacks assistant coach and the first foreigner to coach Australia.

But the Wallabies are coming off a dramatic 41-39 win over the World Cup champion Springboks at Bloemfontein – Australia’s first win on South Africa’s high veldt in 47 years.

“We haven’t beaten [New Zealand] in a long time,” Genia said. “We created history with the last game that we played and there’s a very good chance we can do it this weekend. It just adds more to how big the challenge is.”

Deans has only made one enforced change to the line-up which won at Bloemfontein last weekend, with Lachie Turner replacing injured winger Drew Mitchell. Richie McCaw will beat Sean Fitzpatrick’s record of 51 tests as All Blacks captain when he starts. He says the importance of a win over Australia in Sydney is high, but still secondary to New Zealand’s target of winning the World Cup at home.

Will Genia | The Sun-Herald’s Tri Nations Team Of The Tournament

The Sun-Herald and RugbyHeaven have combined to pick the best XV from the Tri Nations. New Zealand dominate with 11 positions while Richie McCaw has been moved to blindside to accommodate David Pocock and James O’Connor picked on the left wing.

15. Mils Muliaina (New Zealand)14. Cory Jane (New Zealand)13. Conrad Smith (New Zealand)12. Ma’a Nonu (New Zealand)11. James O’Connor (Australia)10. Dan Carter (New Zealand)9. Will Genia (Australia)8. Kieren Read (New Zealand)7. David Pocock (Australia)6. Richie McCaw (New Zealand)5. Nathan Sharpe (Australia)4. Brad Thorn (New Zealand)3. Owen Franks (New Zealand)2. Keven Mealamu (New Zealand)1. Tony Woodcock (New Zealand)

Will Genia | All Blacks Are Keeping Up With Rugby’s Evolution While Australia Are Not Far …

Australia’s good fortune is that they have always unearthed and encouraged players intelligent and gifted enough to play it as they see it, and Will Genia, Quade Cooper, Berrick Barnes and Matt Giteau all fit neatly into that category. With the frequency of passes in the Tri-Nations up year-on-year by 40 per cent, and the frequency of rucks up by 50 per cent, decision-making and execution on the hoof is becoming increasingly important. It may have taken a while for Australia to cotton on to how the game is evolving, but in their two recent matches against South Africa they were playing out of defence, ball-in-hand from inside their 22, with as much facility as the All Blacks managed at the start of the competition.

And therein lies another important indicator. Last November I hooked up with Graham Henry. New Zealand’s coach had just seen his side trump Wales, Italy, England and France, yet old misery guts was far from happy. He was concerned that, with all the kicking prevalent at that time, his side weren’t counter-attacking effectively. Henry’s response was to deconstruct the way the Blacks returned ball from deep, concluding that fitness to get bodies back in support was an issue, and that it was important to have staging points to recycle the ball and interest defenders. Six months later New Zealand’s counter-attacking strategy was revitalised.

Henry and the All Blacks are able to do that because they operate from a position of strength. In an 86-Test career with the All Blacks stretching back to June 2004, Henry’s success rate is a staggering 85 per cent. His team average 3.95 tries per contest. Richie McCaw, New Zealand’s captain, has won 46 of his 52 Tests in charge, and has only come a cropper in 10 of his 89 games overall. Tom Donnelly, the All Black lock brought in to partner Brad Thorn, has not lost a match in 13 appearances. Where other teams around the world are worrying about combinations and leadership and where the next victory is coming from, Henry and his coaching team can address the issue of how best to play the game itself.

South Africa and Australia do not have that luxury. Robbie Deans, Australia’s coach, is vacillating around the 50 per cent mark when it comes to games won, and Bok supremo Peter de Villiers, is vacillating near the door marked ‘exit’, so dire have the Boks been for the majority of their six games against the Wallabies and the Blacks. It is not the fact that South Africa have won only once that has damaged de Villiers. It is the embarrassment that his team have conceded more than 30 points a game.

Even if the growing clamour for Jake White and Eddie Jones, the Boks’ World Cup-winning coaching duo, to replace De Villiers succeeds, South Africa still have a number of problems. It is now palpably plain that skipper John Smit can no longer last the distance, having been substituted around the hour mark in each of his last two matches. There is also no evidence emerging that the Boks are prepared to confront the new realities of Test rugby, relying, as ever, on big men running relatively uncomplicated straight lines to get over the advantage line. And when Bok supporters, admittedly not the most sophisticated grouping on the planet, start jeering Bryan Habana, as they did in Bloemfontein a week ago, it is clear that South African rugby is in a right old mess.

So, New Zealand ahead of the pack with Australia tucked in behind and South Africa pedalling furiously to catch up. Those seem to be the conclusions a year out from the World Cup at the close of a Tri-Nations tournament which has provided stunning entertainment as well as some compelling drama. But, as our table shows, the All Blacks were a racing certainty going into the last World Cup, and look what happened then.

Will Genia | TN8 Statistics: Wallabies V Springboks

What a game! Absolute dominance by the Wallabies in the majority of the first half and then it all turned around with the Springboks taking control for most of the second half until the Wallabies found a way to come back.

Whilst I’ve seen comments that both sides played very poorly in the period of the game that the other side was dominating, that’s not how I saw it when reviewing the game last night. I’d actually put that down as one of the best games I’ve seen since the 2003 World Cup final but I don’t share the view that this was the best game ever played.

In the first 38 minutes of the first half the Wallabies were white hot and the Springboks were just hanging on but they had their moments as well in the first half.

What changed the game was the free kick against James Slipper for collapsing the scrum in the 38th minute. That scrum was the result of the penalty against Johan Pietersen and Jannie du Plessis for infringing at the ruck and given it’s proximity to the goal line, they were lucky that neither got a yellow card. At the time the Wallabies had been hard on attack and given the way they were playing, had they won that scrum, I think they would have scored and that could have blown the game open but the decision went against them and not long after the Wallabies went to sleep and let Victor Matfield run riot. The ruck defence of Mark Chisolm and Nathan Sharpe when Matfield broke away was really poor but if you look at the previous couple of rucks it wasn’t much better. It looked like the Wallabies switched off for those last couple of minutes.

How quickly things can change in a game and the Springboks came out and played magnificently after halftime. The waves of Springbok runners were relentless. Despite the fact that the Springboks scored 30 unanswered points in the period when they were white hot, the Wallabies only missed 10 tackles in the second half and their defence was really strong. A couple of lapses in concentration in possession were what cost the Wallabies in this period, not their defence.

Then the match turned again, with Saia Faingaa deservedly sent to the sin bin, which forced the Wallabies to dig deeper to find some character that I seriously doubted this group had.

The statistics show that the Springboks had 63% of possession in the game – 56% in the first half and 69% in the second half. This meant the Wallabies were faced with a massive 217 tackles compared to only 103 for the Springboks. What kept the Wallabies in the game was that they made 90% of their tackles compared to only 74% for the Springboks. Even with Quade Cooper missing 6 out of the Wallabies 22 missed tackles, it was a good defensive effort against the number three team in the world! Interestingly the Wallabies second half tackle success rate was better at 91% than their first half at 89%.

The Wallabies showed more flair in attack than they have all year and even ran a back line move! The passing was generally very good and their ball retention was much better. The Wallabies only gave up 26% of their possession in the game and the Springboks did even better only giving up 23%.

The difference was that the Wallabies gave up their possession through some poor passes or dropped ball whereas the Springboks gave up most of their possession through turnovers at the breakdown. There’s no prize for guessing who caused most of that damage for the Springboks – David Pocock was outstanding again and his work rate is unbelievable. I bet he’s looking forward to a rest after this weekend’s game.

I thought Rocky Elsom and Matt Giteau had their best games of the year – it’s great to see them running the ball again.

Benn Robinson, Stephen Moore and James Slipper were good with Nathan Sharpe having another excellent game. Ben McCalman made a good run on debut and Richard Brown looked much better as a replacement than as a starter. I didn’t think that Mark Chisolm, Salesi Ma’afu, Dean Mumm or Saia Faingaa pulled their weight.

Will Genia had a good game and was the catalyst for lots of the good things the Wallabies did in attack. Luke Burgess was also really good when he came on and I hope Deans keeps bringing him into the game as Genia tires in the second half of games.

Some of the passes Quade Cooper threw were amazing and it was pleasing to see him controlling the game with some deft kicks in the first half but someone’s got to fix his defence.

Drew Mitchell, Adam Ashley-Cooper and Berrick Barnes were good. James O’Connor is improving rapidly each week and even those of us who have voiced a preference for a specialist winger must be close to acknowledging that he really adds something to the team – I’d be happy to see him hold that position given his current form. Kurtley Beale had a mixed game but his mental strength to overcome a poor second half and land that kick mean that it will be remembered as a good game for him. He certainly offers lots in attack but his defence and how he handles the high ball continue to concern me.

I’m looking forward to seeing whether the Wallabies can replicate their effort against the All Blacks.

Click on the relevant icon below to download the Team Statistics or the Player Statistics.

Will Genia | Finally A Bok Win, Hope It’s Habitual

The final score may look convincing but it was closer than the 13- point gap suggests.

Down by 14 points just seven minutes into the game and the home side got off to the worst possible start imaginable after first Will Genia and then James O’Connor touched down for the visitors.

The 43000-odd spectators were fearing the worst and suspecting history might again go against a player celebrating his 100th Test (Victor Matfield).

But the team’s fortunes changed when flanker Juan Smith opened the account for the Boks when running a perfect line to touch down under the posts and heralding the start of a Bok fightback.

At times the match resembled a seven-a-side game as it became loose and play moved from one end of the field to the other.

Just when the Boks looked like they were getting back into the game, wing Bryan Habana had a moment he’d rather forget.

Making a hash of the restart, the 64-cap veteran knocked the ball on only to have it snuffled up by O’Connor to score the easiest of tries and make it a double for the 20-year-old.

That wasn’t the end of the woes for Habana. His kicking out of hand was less than impressive at times, especially for a player who prides himself on such high-playing standards.

Australia went into the half-time break 28-24 up and at that stage the game was as evenly poised as the score indicated.

Back in the fullback position after three months in the wilderness, the recalled Frans Steyn also had mixed fortunes.

He managed to pick up a try 10 minutes into the second half to give the Boks the lead for the first time in the match. Also a typical long-range penalty – his trademark – helped to push the Boks out to a three-point advantage and it atoned for his indifferent display.

Thoughts that the Australians would wilt in the last quarter of the match because of playing at altitude never materialised. They gave as good as they got until Bok scrumhalf Francois Hougaard made a midfield break before the ball found its way down the backline to a grateful JP Pietersen who casually crossed over for the winning try.

The Springboks will take the win but will know they are still far from the finished product.

As coach Peter de Villiers said earlier in the week: “Winning can become a habit. just as losing can become a habit.”

Let’s hope Saturday heralds the beginning of that winning habit.

Will Genia | All Blacks Are Keeping Up With Rugby’s Evolution While Australia Are Not Far …

Australia’s good fortune is that they have always unearthed and encouraged players intelligent and gifted enough to play it as they see it, and Will Genia, Quade Cooper, Berrick Barnes and Matt Giteau all fit neatly into that category. With the frequency of passes in the Tri-Nations up year-on-year by 40 per cent, and the frequency of rucks up by 50 per cent, decision-making and execution on the hoof is becoming increasingly important. It may have taken a while for Australia to cotton on to how the game is evolving, but in their two recent matches against South Africa they were playing out of defence, ball-in-hand from inside their 22, with as much facility as the All Blacks managed at the start of the competition.

And therein lies another important indicator. Last November I hooked up with Graham Henry. New Zealand’s coach had just seen his side trump Wales, Italy, England and France, yet old misery guts was far from happy. He was concerned that, with all the kicking prevalent at that time, his side weren’t counter-attacking effectively. Henry’s response was to deconstruct the way the Blacks returned ball from deep, concluding that fitness to get bodies back in support was an issue, and that it was important to have staging points to recycle the ball and interest defenders. Six months later New Zealand’s counter-attacking strategy was revitalised.

Henry and the All Blacks are able to do that because they operate from a position of strength. In an 86-Test career with the All Blacks stretching back to June 2004, Henry’s success rate is a staggering 85 per cent. His team average 3.95 tries per contest. Richie McCaw, New Zealand’s captain, has won 46 of his 52 Tests in charge, and has only come a cropper in 10 of his 89 games overall. Tom Donnelly, the All Black lock brought in to partner Brad Thorn, has not lost a match in 13 appearances. Where other teams around the world are worrying about combinations and leadership and where the next victory is coming from, Henry and his coaching team can address the issue of how best to play the game itself.

South Africa and Australia do not have that luxury. Robbie Deans, Australia’s coach, is vacillating around the 50 per cent mark when it comes to games won, and Bok supremo Peter de Villiers, is vacillating near the door marked ‘exit’, so dire have the Boks been for the majority of their six games against the Wallabies and the Blacks. It is not the fact that South Africa have won only once that has damaged de Villiers. It is the embarrassment that his team have conceded more than 30 points a game.

Even if the growing clamour for Jake White and Eddie Jones, the Boks’ World Cup-winning coaching duo, to replace De Villiers succeeds, South Africa still have a number of problems. It is now palpably plain that skipper John Smit can no longer last the distance, having been substituted around the hour mark in each of his last two matches. There is also no evidence emerging that the Boks are prepared to confront the new realities of Test rugby, relying, as ever, on big men running relatively uncomplicated straight lines to get over the advantage line. And when Bok supporters, admittedly not the most sophisticated grouping on the planet, start jeering Bryan Habana, as they did in Bloemfontein a week ago, it is clear that South African rugby is in a right old mess.

So, New Zealand ahead of the pack with Australia tucked in behind and South Africa pedalling furiously to catch up. Those seem to be the conclusions a year out from the World Cup at the close of a Tri-Nations tournament which has provided stunning entertainment as well as some compelling drama. But, as our table shows, the All Blacks were a racing certainty going into the last World Cup, and look what happened then.

Will Genia | Finally A Bok Win, Hope It’s Habitual

The final score may look convincing but it was closer than the 13- point gap suggests.

Down by 14 points just seven minutes into the game and the home side got off to the worst possible start imaginable after first Will Genia and then James O’Connor touched down for the visitors.

The 43000-odd spectators were fearing the worst and suspecting history might again go against a player celebrating his 100th Test (Victor Matfield).

But the team’s fortunes changed when flanker Juan Smith opened the account for the Boks when running a perfect line to touch down under the posts and heralding the start of a Bok fightback.

At times the match resembled a seven-a-side game as it became loose and play moved from one end of the field to the other.

Just when the Boks looked like they were getting back into the game, wing Bryan Habana had a moment he’d rather forget.

Making a hash of the restart, the 64-cap veteran knocked the ball on only to have it snuffled up by O’Connor to score the easiest of tries and make it a double for the 20-year-old.

That wasn’t the end of the woes for Habana. His kicking out of hand was less than impressive at times, especially for a player who prides himself on such high-playing standards.

Australia went into the half-time break 28-24 up and at that stage the game was as evenly poised as the score indicated.

Back in the fullback position after three months in the wilderness, the recalled Frans Steyn also had mixed fortunes.

He managed to pick up a try 10 minutes into the second half to give the Boks the lead for the first time in the match. Also a typical long-range penalty – his trademark – helped to push the Boks out to a three-point advantage and it atoned for his indifferent display.

Thoughts that the Australians would wilt in the last quarter of the match because of playing at altitude never materialised. They gave as good as they got until Bok scrumhalf Francois Hougaard made a midfield break before the ball found its way down the backline to a grateful JP Pietersen who casually crossed over for the winning try.

The Springboks will take the win but will know they are still far from the finished product.

As coach Peter de Villiers said earlier in the week: “Winning can become a habit. just as losing can become a habit.”

Let’s hope Saturday heralds the beginning of that winning habit.

Will Genia | All Blacks: Weepu The Late ‘revelation’

A coach’s report on Piri Weepu would be a fascinating dossier.

The All Black halfback is a potpourri of characteristics, a player with a huge range of skills which intersect with his emotions to create varying levels of performance.

He accepts that he sometimes sulks when things don’t go his way, but says he’s learned to fight much harder than he did in the past.

Talks with the All Black panel have helped, and becoming a father to Kiera seven weeks ago has also mellowed the All Black halfback. His fitness has improved, so too his play.

It wasn’t like that midway through the Super 14. Coach Colin Cooper dropped him to the Hurricanes bench and Weepu’s All Black chances were sliding.

But he got through a few personal issues, reset his goals and gathered a support group who would help push him towards those targets.

It was close. He made the All Blacks as much on reputation as anything. Then the coaches saw his effort. They knew all about his skills, but they wanted more dedication. Weepu made the deal.

“He has been impressive,” assistant Wayne Smith said. “He showed he wants to be there and he needs to keep going. There are lots of things involved in helping him reach his potential. He has to work hard, he’s been great, he’s been a revelation really.”

Weepu has shared the starting duties with Jimmy Cowan this season and gets his third Tri-Nations start tonight in Sydney.

He’s part of a heavy Hurricanes influence in the backline and like young five-eighths Aaron Cruden will get confidence from that familiarity.

He also got a boost when the All Blacks coaches came calling about his Super 14 form slump.

“Everything had to change for me then and as soon as I got the nod I knew I was in the right frame of mind to be positive with everything that I do,” he said.

“I had to pick myself up and turn my season round rather than playing the way I’d been playing and dropping my lip.

“Talking to the coaches turned everything round for myself and I knew that I could be involved in this team as long as I got my attitude right.

“I had a few issues I needed to deal with outside rugby and those I dealt with and everything came right for myself then.”

He and Cowan have job-shared, the only differences in job description, joked Weepu, being the warm-up routines while the reserve also got a chance to survey the action and trends.

He started the last test against the Wallabies in Christchurch, hoped to get this one in Sydney too but doesn’t want to increase the pressure on himself before kickoff.

Weepu’s life was in better balance, coach Graham Henry felt.

“He’s a gifted footballer and can see things others can’t. But it’s a continual challenge for him to be in good shape, more than most of the others in the group.”

But Weepu had made huge advances since being picked in June, Henry said, and needed to push on to the end-of-year tour.

One of tonight’s tasks will be to nurture Cruden. Not babysit, but assist when he wants and needs help.

They worked a lot this week on calls, timing and the nuances of the All Blacks style.

“He has to learn how to play the game somehow so we can’t mollycoddle him too much and this will be a great day for him as long as we give him the guidance to play well,” Weepu said. “Everyone makes mistakes. We can’t get down on ourselves, we just have to brush it off and move on to the next job.

“We can’t dwell on that sort of thing throughout a game otherwise your game will unravel so it is just trying to build confidence and get around him and give him a boost.”

Confidence is a large part of Weepu’s rollercoaster rugby career.

If he and his teammates are in sync with the game plan it boosts his form, it gives him the impetus to express himself and ride out the rough patches that occur in every test.

Claiming a Tri-Nations clean sweep tonight would be a special target. The All Blacks had shown the world a new way of adapting to the game’s cluster of laws.

Their winning run had created a strong team environment but they needed to complete that Tri-Nations campaign.

Weepu will face off against Will Genia, the inventive Wallaby halfback who has added extra dimensions to his side.

He and Quade Cooper were a sparky combination, said Weepu, with attacking instincts to test any defences. “Will is going to be a major threat and being able to contain him at source would help.

“If you shut him down he might go into his shell, we can then build pressure on him but we need to watch him closely.”

Will Genia | New Zealand Beat Australia In Tri-Nations

Showing related results for: id=”results”> Sponsored Results Tria Orthopaedic Center Website, Phone, Contact Info. & More. View Complete Business Details. QuickLocal.com Search Results Starterliste (nach Startnummer) … Men 4 BROWN Cameron 72 NZL NZL -Auckland yes Professionals Men 5 FORSTER … Frank 66 GER Darmstadt SF Tria Rossdorf — Professionals Men 51 SCHUMACHER Katja … services.datasport.com /2003/ tria thlon/ … /STNR.HTM – 189k – Cached Startliste (nach Name) 352 ARMSTRONG Kerry 1976 NZL GB-Essex Ironman F30-34. 353 ARNOLD Erich 1953 SUI CH-Brglen … Sebastian 1972 GER D-Walldorf ASG Tria Hockenheim Ironman M35-39 … services.datasport.com /2009/tri/ironman/NAME.HTM – 441k – Cached Triathletes predict biffo in Sydney swim – Worldnews.com WORLD champion Emma Moffatt fears she will be belted by rivals in the opening swim of Sunday's world championship series triathlon at the Opera House. The top … article.wn.com / … / Tria thletes_predict_biffo_in_Sydney_swim – 212k – Cached Sport in Brief – Telegraph [Dec 3, 2006] Sport in Brief … Rugby .-Ampleforth 7 Oundle 17-Bristol GS 7 Bryanston 67-Cheltenham Col 5 Rugby 8-Clifton 27 Monmouth 17-Cranleigh 5 Wellington (Berks) 44-Downside … telegraph.co.uk / … /othersports/2351697/Sport-in-Brief.html – 77k Joan Marc Fons Grcies Pili, grcies Aleix, sabeu que us portar tota l’estona dins meu. … i ser conseqent amb la seva tria . Pro algunes d’aquestes que us he indicat haurien … joanmarcfons.blogspot.com – 284k – Cached LLARG VIATGE A TACA 2.0: L’entrenament invisible rugby (1) sincro (1) sindrome de rett (1) t-mobile (1) telefonia mbil (1) tour (1) … ser conseqent amb la seva tria . Pro algunes d’aquestes que us he indicat haurien de ser … joanmarcfons.blogspot.com / … /04/lentrenament-invisible.html – 190k – Cached Kiwi Homepage =/ Search… nz rugby league. nigella citrus juicer. nintendo ds lite metallic rose. mistral soap sale … trade and professional associations of the us . nikon ml-l3 schematic disassembly. p90x … www. kiwihomepage.co.nz /az/28.html – 237k – Cached Stats for Saturday, 24th April, 2010 rugby protective shoulder pads size small boys. Harman Kardon … rugby shoulder pads sale. Coby Portable Cassette Player Cx-49 Am Fm Radio Audio Coby … www. kiwihomepage.co.nz /sitemap/stats/2010/april/24.html – 214k – Cached 0804_DE – Translate Pech: Jozy kam eine Einberufung ins US -Olympiateam in die Quere, zudem beutelte … Seitdem Jonny Wilkinson England bei der Rugby -WM 2003 mit einem Drop Goal in der … issuu.com /redbulletin.com/docs/0804_redbulletin – 261k – Cached Andr Kim – Translate Up to the second news about Andr Kim from pul.se … This recut Bolly/Hollywood adventure, set in the southern US , is custom-built to break into western markets, and with its … pul.se /search/Andr%C3%A9 Kim – 322k – Cached Sponsored Results Nl Plc-xf10nz Nzl Thousands of Home & Garden Products. Shop Here Now and Save. www. become.com Omega Nzl at Amazon.com Up to 40% off thousands of styles. Free shipping on qualifying items. Amazon.com /watches Tria Markers & Sets Tria Markers & Sets of 24. 13 different shades to choose from. JerrysArtarama.com See your message here… More search results 1 2 3 Next >

Will Genia | Carter’s Absence Gives Wallabies Hope As All Blacks Seek Perfect 10

New Zealand have already regained the Tri-Nations title and retained the Bledisloe Cup, yet again, but there’s no chance they’ll take it easy against Australia today with a record on the line. The All Blacks have beaten the Wallabies in nine straight tests, equalling their run in trans-Tasman rugby union Tests between 1936 and 1947.

The All Blacks coach, Graham Henry, has made five changes to the line-up which beat South Africa 29-22 in Soweto last month to clinch the Tri-Nations, but the pursuit of a 10th consecutive victory over Australia is still a big motivation.

In the major change, injured playmaker Dan Carter will be replaced by Aaron Cruden at fly-half. Israel Dagg, Victor Vito, Piri Weepu and Owen Franks have all come into the starting line-up for Joe Rokocoko, Jerome Kaino, Jimmy Cowan and Ben Franks.

The absence of Carter could give Australia a slight tactical advantage, as could the home support in Sydney, with the irrepressible Quade Cooper starting a Bledisloe Cup for the first time and facing an inexperienced Cruden rather than a rampant Carter.

Cooper was suspended for a dangerous tackle in Australia’s opening win over South Africa. Queensland and Australia halves partner Will Genia said the Wallabies missed his creativity. “Hopefully he can bring that to the game on Saturday,” Genia said. “Dan Carter is massive for them. They’re going to have to change the way they play a little bit because he controls their game so well.”

The Wallabies haven’t beaten New Zealand since Robbie Deans’ first Test in charge. The nine losses since then have added pressure on Deans, a former All Blacks assistant coach and the first foreigner to coach Australia.

But the Wallabies are coming off a dramatic 41-39 win over the World Cup champion Springboks at Bloemfontein – Australia’s first win on South Africa’s high veldt in 47 years.

“We haven’t beaten [New Zealand] in a long time,” Genia said. “We created history with the last game that we played and there’s a very good chance we can do it this weekend. It just adds more to how big the challenge is.”

Deans has only made one enforced change to the line-up which won at Bloemfontein last weekend, with Lachie Turner replacing injured winger Drew Mitchell. Richie McCaw will beat Sean Fitzpatrick’s record of 51 tests as All Blacks captain when he starts. He says the importance of a win over Australia in Sydney is high, but still secondary to New Zealand’s target of winning the World Cup at home.

Will Genia | All Black ‘character’ Decisive, Says Henry

New Zealand scored two tries in the last 15 minutes to defeat Australia 23-22 on Saturday and sweep the Tri-Nations championship with a record 10th consecutive victory over the Wallabies.

Unrelenting forward pressure after Australia had taken a 22-9 lead into the last quarter resulted in Richie McCaw scampering over the line in the 66th minute. McCaw was playing in his 52nd test as All Blacks skipper to surpass the previous record holder Sean Fitzpatrick.

No 8 Kieran Read barged over the line minutes later and Piri Weepu, laser-accurate all night, converted to put the All Blacks a point up with six minutes left and stun the greater part of the 70,000-plus fans at the Olympic Stadium.

The All Blacks defended stoutly in the final minutes to seal their sixth Tri-Nations victory this year and emerge as the first undefeated team since the southern hemisphere tournament expanded by two matches for each side in 2006.

The loss left Australia with two wins from six starts in the Tri-Nations and time to rue yet another game conceded from a strong position. “Character, character, character. First, second and third,” a beaming New Zealand coach Graham Henry said. “We were pretty rusty initially. When you have a break for a few weeks you get a bit of rust. We had a few new guys who hadn’t played a lot of test matches as well.

“The guys just showed great character and just hung in there and got better as the game went on and pulled it out of the fire.”

Australia, as has often been the case against their archi-rivals, started the brighter of the two sides and took a 14-6 lead at the break. After Weepu posted the first score with a penalty goal in the third minute, winger Lachie Turner was denied a dream return to the Wallabies’ lineup minutes later when his try at the left corner was disallowed by video review after he appeared to clip the sideline.

Number eight Ben McCalman snatched the ball out of the ruck then capitalised on rare disorganisation in the All Blacks’ defence to set up winger James O’Connor for the Wallabies’ first try.

Matt Giteau slotted his third penalty at the stroke of halftime to give the Wallabies an eight-point lead at the break but sprayed a number of others.

Despite Giteau’s profligacy, the Wallabies raised hopes of ending their grim losing streak when Will Genia set up Adam Ashley-Cooper for the Wallabies’ second try after the break. The scrum-half combined with Quade Cooper to rattle the All Blacks’ defence before sending a long pass to Ashley-Cooper who feinted a hand-off before charging over to put the Wallabies up 19-6.

Full-back Kurtley Beale took over kicking duties after Giteau missed his second conversion chance and succeeded with a long-range penalty to extend the lead to 22-9.

McCaw, however, turned the game around and the Wallabies began to fumble and miss passes as the All Blacks’ pressure took its toll in the final quarter. At the end of a fierce barrages of drives, Read had the second try and Weepu slotted his second conversion to finish with three penalty goals and 13 points in a perfect display.

Having dominated possession for most of the night, the toll of the Wallabies’ trip to South Africa the previous week appeared to tell. The All Blacks charged home to post their 15th consecutive win and surpass the sides who notched nine in a row against the Wallabies from 1936-1947.

Will Genia | World Cup 2011: Most Influential Players For ’11

1 – Fourie du Preez (South Africa)

Caps: 55

Just look at what happened to the Boks in his absence.

Du Preez is the top weight, the class horse among an ordinary field of halfbacks, but he’s not much good to anybody when he’s injured.

South Africa seem to have unearthed a decent replacement in Francois Hougaard but, while he is snappy and bustling, he cannot grab a game by the scruff of the neck like du Preez.

Perhaps the best illustration of the value of du Preez is to look one spot further out to Morne Steyn. When du Preez is directing traffic at the base of the ruck, Steyn looks like he has all the time in the world to kick, pass and occasionally run.

2 – David Pocock (Australia)

Caps: 22

You could argue that Quade Cooper is more pivotal – certainly, the Parramatta Eels seem to think so – or that Will Genia or the fast-fading Matt Giteau have the keys to unlock defences, but it is openside flanker David Pocock who has emerged as the beating heart of this side.

For years, the Wallabies have struggled to compete with the All Blacks for the simple reason they do not have the necessary physicality in the pack. While everyone pointed to its most obvious manifestation, the scrum, it could be argued the soft underbelly was never more costly than at the breakdown.

Pocock is doing his damnedest to single-handedly turn that around.

3 – Johnnie Beattie (Scotland)

Caps: 14

There was a brief moment in time when Scotland were quite good at rugby. The year was 1990 when they won the Grand Slam and it was three old-stagers who were the fulcrum – Derek White, Finlay Calder and John Jeffrey, a back-row trio with plenty of presence.

Many in Scotland believe they have the second coming in Glasgow back-rowers Kelly Brown (who has just joined Saracens), John Barclay and Johnnie Beattie.

It is Beattie who is the most damaging of the three. The son of another Scotland No 8, John, not-so-little Johnnie is not so much a chip off the old block, but a whopping great chunk.

4 – James Hook (Wales)

Caps: 43

The 25-year-old hails from Wales rugby heartland in Neath. He has long been considered talented enough to follow in the first-five tradition of Barry John and Phil Bennett.

The problem is that Hook has become something of a backline nomad. His best is undoubtedly No 10, where he can exert the most influence, but he is talented enough to play in several positions. This has seen him shunted to the margins to accommodate Stephen Jones, a fine player himself who can really only play at first five-eighth.

Jones is going to be 33 by the World Cup. You sense the time has come for Warren Gatland to hand the No 10 jersey to Hook.

5 – Sergio Parisse (Italy)

Caps: 65

The Argentine-born Parisse might well be the best No 8 in the world, although it is sometimes difficult to assess his value in an Italian team that traditionally struggles.

After missing the 2010 Six Nations following a serious knee injury, the world must wait to see if he returns to the sort of form that had him nominated for IRB player of the year in 2008.

Parisse is a highly skilled No 8, Italy’s best lineout forward and also their best ball-handler.

If there’s one thing holding him back it is his fascination with some of the game’s darker arts – far harder to get away with now. With few world-class players they need Parisse on the pitch for 80 minutes every game.

6 – Rodrigo Roncero (Argentina)

Caps: 37

The 33-year-old Roncero comes pretty much as part of a package deal with his 34-year-old propping mate Martin Scelzo and 37-year-old hooker Mario Ledesma.

Without a domestic competition of any note, Argentina shamed the rugby superpowers by making the semifinals of the 2007 World Cup.

With world-class operators Juan Martin Lobbe, Felipe Contepomi and Juan Martin Hernandez in their midst, Argentina are always dangerous. The abilities of their grizzled front row are best described as destructive and Roncero, with the No 1 on his back, can make any tighthead prop’s day a misery with tactics that range from brute strength to downright dirty.

7 – Thierry Dusautoir (France)

Caps: 35

The workaholic flanker – he normally plays with No 6 on his back but operates as an openside – is well known to New Zealanders.

He made 36 tackles in a certain World Cup quarter-final, which, according to some stats panels, was more than the entire All Black team. He also scored a try in that same match and led Les Bleus to their upset victory at Carisbrook last year.

So the man born in Cote d’Ivoire is a pain in the posteriors of Mssrs Henry, Smith and Hansen and a hero in the rugby heartlands of France. Big and strong in the mould of Serge Betsen, Dusautoir gets his head into places others would not normally, though they will follow him.

8 – Brian O’Driscoll (Ireland)

Caps: 109 (6 for Lions) A man familiar with European rugby believed that this year provided the first evidence of a decline in the super-high standards set by O’Driscoll. For someone who seems to have been kicking around as long as U2, O’Driscoll is still just 31 and you’d think he has the nous to get himself up for a tournament as big as the World Cup. He needs to.

The Irish are just as culpable as the All Blacks for peaking between World Cups. The embarrassment of 2007, when they failed to advance past pool play, was just the latest disappointment. Ireland have never made a World Cup semifinal. They’ll need a few O’Driscoll specials to reverse that trend.

9 – Tom Croft (England)

Caps: 21 (3 for Lions)

If you think the 24-year-old moves like a dancer that’s because he is, or was. Between the ages of 12-16, Croft trained in dancing, something he believes has benefited his aerial skills and agility.

Croft has the ability to break into the game’s elite. The athletic loose forward is capable of playing at openside, but is best suited to being a ball-winning blindside. Playing for Leicester, Aaron Mauger described him as the quickest back-rower he had ever seen.

Croft missed the 2010 Six nations after damaging his medial ligament. It is the sort of injury that can take away a yard of pace or two, so it remains to be seen whether Croft becomes the dominant force here in 2011 many expect him to be.

10 & 11 – Richie McCaw and Daniel Carter (NZ)

Caps: 88 & 74

No startling revelations here. The All Blacks might have reinforced their reputation as the most dangerous team on the planet over the past season, but without either of these two players the fear factor is greatly diminished.

It’s a rare occasion when McCaw is not accused of cheating in the week leading up to a test. Where once it was outrageous, then briefly amusing, now it is flatulent, but at least it is a sign of how preoccupied the opposition is with the flanker.

Carter might not hit the high notes as regularly as he did at his peak in 2005, but he’s still a brilliant game manipulator and the class five-eighth in world rugby. News following the last gasp 29-22 victory in Soweto that he required ankle surgery would have added furrows to Graham Henry’s brow.

Adding to the sphere of influence that surrounds the Cantabrians, these are the two positions that New Zealand cannot claim great depth in, due in part to the fact these two have had first dibs on the 7 and 10 jerseys for such a long time.

Will Genia | Finally A Bok Win, Hope It’s Habitual

The final score may look convincing but it was closer than the 13- point gap suggests.

Down by 14 points just seven minutes into the game and the home side got off to the worst possible start imaginable after first Will Genia and then James O’Connor touched down for the visitors.

The 43000-odd spectators were fearing the worst and suspecting history might again go against a player celebrating his 100th Test (Victor Matfield).

But the team’s fortunes changed when flanker Juan Smith opened the account for the Boks when running a perfect line to touch down under the posts and heralding the start of a Bok fightback.

At times the match resembled a seven-a-side game as it became loose and play moved from one end of the field to the other.

Just when the Boks looked like they were getting back into the game, wing Bryan Habana had a moment he’d rather forget.

Making a hash of the restart, the 64-cap veteran knocked the ball on only to have it snuffled up by O’Connor to score the easiest of tries and make it a double for the 20-year-old.

That wasn’t the end of the woes for Habana. His kicking out of hand was less than impressive at times, especially for a player who prides himself on such high-playing standards.

Australia went into the half-time break 28-24 up and at that stage the game was as evenly poised as the score indicated.

Back in the fullback position after three months in the wilderness, the recalled Frans Steyn also had mixed fortunes.

He managed to pick up a try 10 minutes into the second half to give the Boks the lead for the first time in the match. Also a typical long-range penalty – his trademark – helped to push the Boks out to a three-point advantage and it atoned for his indifferent display.

Thoughts that the Australians would wilt in the last quarter of the match because of playing at altitude never materialised. They gave as good as they got until Bok scrumhalf Francois Hougaard made a midfield break before the ball found its way down the backline to a grateful JP Pietersen who casually crossed over for the winning try.

The Springboks will take the win but will know they are still far from the finished product.

As coach Peter de Villiers said earlier in the week: “Winning can become a habit. just as losing can become a habit.”

Let’s hope Saturday heralds the beginning of that winning habit.

Will Genia | Finally A Bok Win, Hope It’s Habitual

The final score may look convincing but it was closer than the 13- point gap suggests.

Down by 14 points just seven minutes into the game and the home side got off to the worst possible start imaginable after first Will Genia and then James O’Connor touched down for the visitors.

The 43000-odd spectators were fearing the worst and suspecting history might again go against a player celebrating his 100th Test (Victor Matfield).

But the team’s fortunes changed when flanker Juan Smith opened the account for the Boks when running a perfect line to touch down under the posts and heralding the start of a Bok fightback.

At times the match resembled a seven-a-side game as it became loose and play moved from one end of the field to the other.

Just when the Boks looked like they were getting back into the game, wing Bryan Habana had a moment he’d rather forget.

Making a hash of the restart, the 64-cap veteran knocked the ball on only to have it snuffled up by O’Connor to score the easiest of tries and make it a double for the 20-year-old.

That wasn’t the end of the woes for Habana. His kicking out of hand was less than impressive at times, especially for a player who prides himself on such high-playing standards.

Australia went into the half-time break 28-24 up and at that stage the game was as evenly poised as the score indicated.

Back in the fullback position after three months in the wilderness, the recalled Frans Steyn also had mixed fortunes.

He managed to pick up a try 10 minutes into the second half to give the Boks the lead for the first time in the match. Also a typical long-range penalty – his trademark – helped to push the Boks out to a three-point advantage and it atoned for his indifferent display.

Thoughts that the Australians would wilt in the last quarter of the match because of playing at altitude never materialised. They gave as good as they got until Bok scrumhalf Francois Hougaard made a midfield break before the ball found its way down the backline to a grateful JP Pietersen who casually crossed over for the winning try.

The Springboks will take the win but will know they are still far from the finished product.

As coach Peter de Villiers said earlier in the week: “Winning can become a habit. just as losing can become a habit.”

Let’s hope Saturday heralds the beginning of that winning habit.

Will Genia | All Blacks Are Keeping Up With Rugby’s Evolution While Australia Are Not Far Behind

Australia’s good fortune is that they have always unearthed and encouraged players intelligent and gifted enough to play it as they see it, and Will Genia, Quade Cooper, Berrick Barnes and Matt Giteau all fit neatly into that category. With the frequency of passes in the Tri-Nations up year-on-year by 40 per cent, and the frequency of rucks up by 50 per cent, decision-making and execution on the hoof is becoming increasingly important. It may have taken a while for Australia to cotton on to how the game is evolving, but in their two recent matches against South Africa they were playing out of defence, ball-in-hand from inside their 22, with as much facility as the All Blacks managed at the start of the competition.

And therein lies another important indicator. Last November I hooked up with Graham Henry. New Zealand’s coach had just seen his side trump Wales, Italy, England and France, yet old misery guts was far from happy. He was concerned that, with all the kicking prevalent at that time, his side weren’t counter-attacking effectively. Henry’s response was to deconstruct the way the Blacks returned ball from deep, concluding that fitness to get bodies back in support was an issue, and that it was important to have staging points to recycle the ball and interest defenders. Six months later New Zealand’s counter-attacking strategy was revitalised.

Henry and the All Blacks are able to do that because they operate from a position of strength. In an 86-Test career with the All Blacks stretching back to June 2004, Henry’s success rate is a staggering 85 per cent. His team average 3.95 tries per contest. Richie McCaw, New Zealand’s captain, has won 46 of his 52 Tests in charge, and has only come a cropper in 10 of his 89 games overall. Tom Donnelly, the All Black lock brought in to partner Brad Thorn, has not lost a match in 13 appearances. Where other teams around the world are worrying about combinations and leadership and where the next victory is coming from, Henry and his coaching team can address the issue of how best to play the game itself.

South Africa and Australia do not have that luxury. Robbie Deans, Australia’s coach, is vacillating around the 50 per cent mark when it comes to games won, and Bok supremo Peter de Villiers, is vacillating near the door marked ‘exit’, so dire have the Boks been for the majority of their six games against the Wallabies and the Blacks. It is not the fact that South Africa have won only once that has damaged de Villiers. It is the embarrassment that his team have conceded more than 30 points a game.

Even if the growing clamour for Jake White and Eddie Jones, the Boks’ World Cup-winning coaching duo, to replace De Villiers succeeds, South Africa still have a number of problems. It is now palpably plain that skipper John Smit can no longer last the distance, having been substituted around the hour mark in each of his last two matches. There is also no evidence emerging that the Boks are prepared to confront the new realities of Test rugby, relying, as ever, on big men running relatively uncomplicated straight lines to get over the advantage line. And when Bok supporters, admittedly not the most sophisticated grouping on the planet, start jeering Bryan Habana, as they did in Bloemfontein a week ago, it is clear that South African rugby is in a right old mess.

So, New Zealand ahead of the pack with Australia tucked in behind and South Africa pedalling furiously to catch up. Those seem to be the conclusions a year out from the World Cup at the close of a Tri-Nations tournament which has provided stunning entertainment as well as some compelling drama. But, as our table shows, the All Blacks were a racing certainty going into the last World Cup, and look what happened then.

Will Genia | All Blacks: Weepu The Late ‘revelation’

A coach’s report on Piri Weepu would be a fascinating dossier.

The All Black halfback is a potpourri of characteristics, a player with a huge range of skills which intersect with his emotions to create varying levels of performance.

He accepts that he sometimes sulks when things don’t go his way, but says he’s learned to fight much harder than he did in the past.

Talks with the All Black panel have helped, and becoming a father to Kiera seven weeks ago has also mellowed the All Black halfback. His fitness has improved, so too his play.

It wasn’t like that midway through the Super 14. Coach Colin Cooper dropped him to the Hurricanes bench and Weepu’s All Black chances were sliding.

But he got through a few personal issues, reset his goals and gathered a support group who would help push him towards those targets.

It was close. He made the All Blacks as much on reputation as anything. Then the coaches saw his effort. They knew all about his skills, but they wanted more dedication. Weepu made the deal.

“He has been impressive,” assistant Wayne Smith said. “He showed he wants to be there and he needs to keep going. There are lots of things involved in helping him reach his potential. He has to work hard, he’s been great, he’s been a revelation really.”

Weepu has shared the starting duties with Jimmy Cowan this season and gets his third Tri-Nations start tonight in Sydney.

He’s part of a heavy Hurricanes influence in the backline and like young five-eighths Aaron Cruden will get confidence from that familiarity.

He also got a boost when the All Blacks coaches came calling about his Super 14 form slump.

“Everything had to change for me then and as soon as I got the nod I knew I was in the right frame of mind to be positive with everything that I do,” he said.

“I had to pick myself up and turn my season round rather than playing the way I’d been playing and dropping my lip.

“Talking to the coaches turned everything round for myself and I knew that I could be involved in this team as long as I got my attitude right.

“I had a few issues I needed to deal with outside rugby and those I dealt with and everything came right for myself then.”

He and Cowan have job-shared, the only differences in job description, joked Weepu, being the warm-up routines while the reserve also got a chance to survey the action and trends.

He started the last test against the Wallabies in Christchurch, hoped to get this one in Sydney too but doesn’t want to increase the pressure on himself before kickoff.

Weepu’s life was in better balance, coach Graham Henry felt.

“He’s a gifted footballer and can see things others can’t. But it’s a continual challenge for him to be in good shape, more than most of the others in the group.”

But Weepu had made huge advances since being picked in June, Henry said, and needed to push on to the end-of-year tour.

One of tonight’s tasks will be to nurture Cruden. Not babysit, but assist when he wants and needs help.

They worked a lot this week on calls, timing and the nuances of the All Blacks style.

“He has to learn how to play the game somehow so we can’t mollycoddle him too much and this will be a great day for him as long as we give him the guidance to play well,” Weepu said. “Everyone makes mistakes. We can’t get down on ourselves, we just have to brush it off and move on to the next job.

“We can’t dwell on that sort of thing throughout a game otherwise your game will unravel so it is just trying to build confidence and get around him and give him a boost.”

Confidence is a large part of Weepu’s rollercoaster rugby career.

If he and his teammates are in sync with the game plan it boosts his form, it gives him the impetus to express himself and ride out the rough patches that occur in every test.

Claiming a Tri-Nations clean sweep tonight would be a special target. The All Blacks had shown the world a new way of adapting to the game’s cluster of laws.

Their winning run had created a strong team environment but they needed to complete that Tri-Nations campaign.

Weepu will face off against Will Genia, the inventive Wallaby halfback who has added extra dimensions to his side.

He and Quade Cooper were a sparky combination, said Weepu, with attacking instincts to test any defences. “Will is going to be a major threat and being able to contain him at source would help.

“If you shut him down he might go into his shell, we can then build pressure on him but we need to watch him closely.”

Will Genia | Carter’s Absence Gives Wallabies Hope As All Blacks Seek Perfect 10

New Zealand have already regained the Tri-Nations title and retained the Bledisloe Cup, yet again, but there’s no chance they’ll take it easy against Australia today with a record on the line. The All Blacks have beaten the Wallabies in nine straight tests, equalling their run in trans-Tasman rugby union Tests between 1936 and 1947.

The All Blacks coach, Graham Henry, has made five changes to the line-up which beat South Africa 29-22 in Soweto last month to clinch the Tri-Nations, but the pursuit of a 10th consecutive victory over Australia is still a big motivation.

In the major change, injured playmaker Dan Carter will be replaced by Aaron Cruden at fly-half. Israel Dagg, Victor Vito, Piri Weepu and Owen Franks have all come into the starting line-up for Joe Rokocoko, Jerome Kaino, Jimmy Cowan and Ben Franks.

The absence of Carter could give Australia a slight tactical advantage, as could the home support in Sydney, with the irrepressible Quade Cooper starting a Bledisloe Cup for the first time and facing an inexperienced Cruden rather than a rampant Carter.

Cooper was suspended for a dangerous tackle in Australia’s opening win over South Africa. Queensland and Australia halves partner Will Genia said the Wallabies missed his creativity. “Hopefully he can bring that to the game on Saturday,” Genia said. “Dan Carter is massive for them. They’re going to have to change the way they play a little bit because he controls their game so well.”

The Wallabies haven’t beaten New Zealand since Robbie Deans’ first Test in charge. The nine losses since then have added pressure on Deans, a former All Blacks assistant coach and the first foreigner to coach Australia.

But the Wallabies are coming off a dramatic 41-39 win over the World Cup champion Springboks at Bloemfontein – Australia’s first win on South Africa’s high veldt in 47 years.

“We haven’t beaten [New Zealand] in a long time,” Genia said. “We created history with the last game that we played and there’s a very good chance we can do it this weekend. It just adds more to how big the challenge is.”

Deans has only made one enforced change to the line-up which won at Bloemfontein last weekend, with Lachie Turner replacing injured winger Drew Mitchell. Richie McCaw will beat Sean Fitzpatrick’s record of 51 tests as All Blacks captain when he starts. He says the importance of a win over Australia in Sydney is high, but still secondary to New Zealand’s target of winning the World Cup at home.

Will Genia | All Black ‘character’ Decisive, Says Henry

New Zealand scored two tries in the last 15 minutes to defeat Australia 23-22 on Saturday and sweep the Tri-Nations championship with a record 10th consecutive victory over the Wallabies.

Unrelenting forward pressure after Australia had taken a 22-9 lead into the last quarter resulted in Richie McCaw scampering over the line in the 66th minute. McCaw was playing in his 52nd test as All Blacks skipper to surpass the previous record holder Sean Fitzpatrick.

No 8 Kieran Read barged over the line minutes later and Piri Weepu, laser-accurate all night, converted to put the All Blacks a point up with six minutes left and stun the greater part of the 70,000-plus fans at the Olympic Stadium.

The All Blacks defended stoutly in the final minutes to seal their sixth Tri-Nations victory this year and emerge as the first undefeated team since the southern hemisphere tournament expanded by two matches for each side in 2006.

The loss left Australia with two wins from six starts in the Tri-Nations and time to rue yet another game conceded from a strong position. “Character, character, character. First, second and third,” a beaming New Zealand coach Graham Henry said. “We were pretty rusty initially. When you have a break for a few weeks you get a bit of rust. We had a few new guys who hadn’t played a lot of test matches as well.

“The guys just showed great character and just hung in there and got better as the game went on and pulled it out of the fire.”

Australia, as has often been the case against their archi-rivals, started the brighter of the two sides and took a 14-6 lead at the break. After Weepu posted the first score with a penalty goal in the third minute, winger Lachie Turner was denied a dream return to the Wallabies’ lineup minutes later when his try at the left corner was disallowed by video review after he appeared to clip the sideline.

Number eight Ben McCalman snatched the ball out of the ruck then capitalised on rare disorganisation in the All Blacks’ defence to set up winger James O’Connor for the Wallabies’ first try.

Matt Giteau slotted his third penalty at the stroke of halftime to give the Wallabies an eight-point lead at the break but sprayed a number of others.

Despite Giteau’s profligacy, the Wallabies raised hopes of ending their grim losing streak when Will Genia set up Adam Ashley-Cooper for the Wallabies’ second try after the break. The scrum-half combined with Quade Cooper to rattle the All Blacks’ defence before sending a long pass to Ashley-Cooper who feinted a hand-off before charging over to put the Wallabies up 19-6.

Full-back Kurtley Beale took over kicking duties after Giteau missed his second conversion chance and succeeded with a long-range penalty to extend the lead to 22-9.

McCaw, however, turned the game around and the Wallabies began to fumble and miss passes as the All Blacks’ pressure took its toll in the final quarter. At the end of a fierce barrages of drives, Read had the second try and Weepu slotted his second conversion to finish with three penalty goals and 13 points in a perfect display.

Having dominated possession for most of the night, the toll of the Wallabies’ trip to South Africa the previous week appeared to tell. The All Blacks charged home to post their 15th consecutive win and surpass the sides who notched nine in a row against the Wallabies from 1936-1947.