The All Blacks haven’t peaked yet.
That’s according to head coach Ian Foster off the back of his side’s third straight Rugby Championship win and retention of the Bledisloe Cup.
It’s an ominous warning to the rest of the world for a side that in 2022 reached new lows but has come out firing in 2023.
READ MORE: NRL comes down hard on De Belin hip drop
READ MORE: Stuart Broad stuns Ashes with retirement announcement
READ MORE: Selection headache facing Australia’s swim stars
By the end of last year, the All Blacks didn’t look like they’d factor into Rugby World Cup contention.
Off the back of dominant displays against the Springboks, the Pumas, and now the Wallabies, the three-time world champions are almost undoubtedly among the favourites to take home the Webb Ellis Cup.
Although it’s good news for All Blacks fans, for Foster, he’d rather have kept a low profile just 40 days out from their opening pool match against France.
“Maybe if you guys could dampen some of your headlines it would be good and we could keep under the radar a little bit longer,” Foster joked.
Watch every match of the 2023 Rugby Championship and Bledisloe Cup on the home of rugby, Stan Sport. All matches streaming ad free, live and on demand
“What other people think is kind of irrelevant to us. We’re trying to build something that gets us where we want to be.
“We made the point early, we feel the best way to prepare for the big stage is to prepare for the big stage every week. That’s what we’ve had to learn.
“We know we had some growing up to do as a team coming into this year, and so far we’ve taken three pretty strong steps forward which we’re pretty proud of.
“But I’m not sure it’s quite enough just yet.”
If the All Blacks haven’t hit their straps yet, it should be cause for concern for the rest of the world.
Despite the 38-7 scoreline, Foster didn’t downplay the threat the Wallabies posed.
While both sides scored early, the Wallabies were able to keep the All Blacks at bay for the most part in the first 20 minutes.
That stood in stark contrast to the 20-minute onslaught against the Springboks two weeks earlier.
“It was hard work trying to create space behind them,” said Foster of the Wallabies.
Brutal tackle gifts epic All Blacks try
“I thought early on that they defended really strong. I thought they had an edge in that space. I thought we were slow to bounce and get set the way we want to get set defensively and I thought they were a little bit more ominous with the ball than we were.
“We found a way. We got our breakdown sorted. We were a little bit passive and a little bit high. We had a lot of bodies on the ground while they had people on their feet and reaching over and causing grief.
“I think the scoreline flattered us, to be perfectly honest. I thought we clearly deserved the win, but I thought there was enough in that Aussie performance that they’ll take away a lot of good points from that. They’ll regret they couldn’t get more prolonged periods of pressure on us.
“The manner of it is pleasing,” he added. “We got told we hadn’t been put under a lot of pressure in the first two games. I don’t think that was correct. Today we were still being put under a lot of pressure, but how we’re adapting to that is pleasing.
“We know there will be more challenges ahead, but we can only deal with the challenges one at a time and there’s some good growth.”
With the Rugby World Cup a little over a month away and something of a dead-rubber to come against Australia in Dunedin, some selection experimentation may be forthcoming.
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!
Eddie Jones’ remarkable career in pictures: Wallabies coach’s prescient Bazball warning for England
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
