New Zealand coach Steve Hansen yesterday warned his history-making All Blacks not to get too far ahead of themselves as they were showered with praise following their record-breaking 57-15 thrashing of South Africa.
Former All Blacks captain Sean Fitzpatrick, speaking on SkySports in England, hailed the current side as “the best ever” after the nine-try demolition took them to a world record-equaling 17th consecutive victory.
The Planet Rugby Web site rated the All Blacks “phenomenal,” particularly in the second half, when they scored 45 points and conceded only six, describing the performance “as one-sided a game as you will see at Test level.”
Photo: Reuters
The All Blacks embarrassed the Springboks in their Durban, South Africa, fortress, producing their highest score and biggest winning margin against their archrivals in 93 Tests dating back to 1921.
They became the first team to go through a Rugby Championship season scoring four or more tries in each Test, and if they beat Australia when they clash in Auckland, New Zealand, on Oct. 22 they will become the most successful ever top-tier side.
Their current streak of 17 wins in a row equals the world record set by the 1965-1969 and 2013-2014 All Blacks, and the 1997-1998 Springboks.
Photo: AFP
“The @AllBlacks are playing a different game to anybody on the planet at the moment. Just a joy to watch. Power pace and skill,” former Wales and British and Irish Lions backrower Scott Quinnell said on Twitter.
However, Hansen said that while the current crop of All Blacks were “a good side” and determined to get better, he noted that Australia have a history of upsetting them.
“I wouldn’t get too far ahead of ourselves,” Hansen said in Durban. “If we’re going to go one step further we’ve got to make sure we prepare really well. Australia are a good rugby side.”
“They’ve got a history of turning up when there’s a record on the table,” he added.
The Wallabies stopped the All Blacks’ last record run with a 12-12 draw in Sydney in 2014, while in 2010, when the All Blacks were on a 15-match winning streak, they were beaten 26-14 by Australia in Hong Kong.
The All Blacks have already twice this year convincingly beaten the Wallabies — 42-8 in Sydney and 29-9 in Wellington.
Hansen said that while there was no guarantee they would win the third encounter, setting records and creating history was their aim.
“They’re a team that want to get better and do things other teams haven’t done. That’s been the case with this group since 2012. We’re trying to find different horizons all the time,” he said.
Fitzpatrick, in his praise of the All Blacks, noted they have not missed a beat, despite losing 800 caps’ worth of experience — including legends Richie McCaw and Dan Carter — after winning the World Cup last year.
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