In what is truly a most delicious irony, the constant remarks from Warren Gatland and Wales about the All Blacks aura and lack of invincibility, may have in fact had the opposite desired effect.
Leading up to and after the game, two parallels struck me about Wales and their talk.
The first was in regard to movies. If you like rugby, then you probably like action films.
We have all seen them. Often one party or character does all the talk, all the pre match moves, and does everything possible to boost their own opinion of themself. But rarely does this antagonist actually win the fight. It is always the strong silent type.
In life, I can think of some wise words I have heard, such as “don’t waste your energy on talk, channel it into the fight”. Another brilliant statement would be “if people are unsure of their ability to do the job, then they will either talk themselves up, or talk their opponents down.”
This is priceless wisdom that unfortunately Wales completely forgot about leading up to Cardiff last weekend.
The All Blacks played the part of the silent action hero to perfection, and won most of the battles and took the fight.
The other was related to the time honoured tradition of flirting, especially when you were young.
When the pretty girl (or for the female readers, boy) that you always liked came up to you, often you would blatantly deny that you liked them. As we learned when we got older, this was a silly thing to do, as it sometimes meant that they tired of you beating around the bush and went for someone else.
Wales knew that no other team in modern history has caused them as many issues, beatings or heartache as the All Blacks. But aside from some isolated comments from some players, by and large it was just a case of saying that Wales had improved, the All Blacks weren’t so good anymore, etc.
In future, maybe it would be better to admit, based on flirting, that the All Blacks are still quite pretty (in relating to their ability).
Sometimes it is better to be direct and to the point, rather than wasting your banter with misguided denials and bravado.
Wales are a good side, and despite the All Blacks less than perfect year, they are too.
The key difference between the teams was that the Red Dragons clearly had not learned too much from their defeat just 12 months earlier, whereas the All Blacks had prepared accordingly.
As they did in 2008, Wales came out all fire and brimstone.
But the All Blacks, who had been put on the back foot during their Grand Slam quest with a fired up Wales, expected the same this year and played with a far more patient holding pattern. They took everything that the hosts fired at them, even if they did not really fire a shot themselves in the first half.
They gave the impression of a fighter taking the hits with the defence up while preparing to deliver the knockouts of their own.
And, despite the fact that it is well known that the All Blacks are a very strong second half side, the Welsh showed precious little adjustment and continued their all consuming desire to attack.
But while one must give credit to the fact that conceivably Wales could have drawn the test match in the final minutes, their repeated strikes to the All Blacks did little real damage.
And this is but one of Wales’ problems.
First of all, even when considering New Zealand’s good defensive patterns, for Wales not to be able to score a solitary try when apparently crafting their entire game plan to scoring one is an issue.
Second, while the constant appearance of the Welsh forwards in the backline for greater running numbers may excuse this, again the Red Dragons were found wanting at the breakdown.
As it was in the Six Nations, they struggled to compete at crucial times in the loose. For a team that once proudly strutted around Europe as the dominant Northern power, this is not good enough. It is even more surprising when considering Gatland’s background as a New Zealand coach.
However, the worst aspect was lack of adjustment when it was clear that their initial tactics were not working.
The All Blacks have learned the hard way that not having either a “plan B” or ability to switch strategies is simply not good enough at the highest level. They learned this in Cardiff in 2007 (anyone want to take a drop goal!), and again this year at the Springboks (don’t run the ball from your 22 against a South African rush defence).
Gatland and Wales spent so much time talking down the All Blacks that they may have actually talked them up with a twisted form of reverse psychology. Post match they spent so much time focusing on Carter’s tackle and not on what they did wrong - to show that Wales could in fact be on the wrong page altogether.
Wales are a good team.
They may be the only ones standing between Australia and a Grand Slam at the end of the month, and it could again fall to the Red Dragons to prove that the Northern nations can compete with the might of the South.
Leading up to and after the game, two parallels struck me about Wales and their talk.
The first was in regard to movies. If you like rugby, then you probably like action films.
We have all seen them. Often one party or character does all the talk, all the pre match moves, and does everything possible to boost their own opinion of themself. But rarely does this antagonist actually win the fight. It is always the strong silent type.
In life, I can think of some wise words I have heard, such as “don’t waste your energy on talk, channel it into the fight”. Another brilliant statement would be “if people are unsure of their ability to do the job, then they will either talk themselves up, or talk their opponents down.”
This is priceless wisdom that unfortunately Wales completely forgot about leading up to Cardiff last weekend.
The All Blacks played the part of the silent action hero to perfection, and won most of the battles and took the fight.
The other was related to the time honoured tradition of flirting, especially when you were young.
When the pretty girl (or for the female readers, boy) that you always liked came up to you, often you would blatantly deny that you liked them. As we learned when we got older, this was a silly thing to do, as it sometimes meant that they tired of you beating around the bush and went for someone else.
Wales knew that no other team in modern history has caused them as many issues, beatings or heartache as the All Blacks. But aside from some isolated comments from some players, by and large it was just a case of saying that Wales had improved, the All Blacks weren’t so good anymore, etc.
In future, maybe it would be better to admit, based on flirting, that the All Blacks are still quite pretty (in relating to their ability).
Sometimes it is better to be direct and to the point, rather than wasting your banter with misguided denials and bravado.
Wales are a good side, and despite the All Blacks less than perfect year, they are too.
The key difference between the teams was that the Red Dragons clearly had not learned too much from their defeat just 12 months earlier, whereas the All Blacks had prepared accordingly.
As they did in 2008, Wales came out all fire and brimstone.
But the All Blacks, who had been put on the back foot during their Grand Slam quest with a fired up Wales, expected the same this year and played with a far more patient holding pattern. They took everything that the hosts fired at them, even if they did not really fire a shot themselves in the first half.
They gave the impression of a fighter taking the hits with the defence up while preparing to deliver the knockouts of their own.
And, despite the fact that it is well known that the All Blacks are a very strong second half side, the Welsh showed precious little adjustment and continued their all consuming desire to attack.
But while one must give credit to the fact that conceivably Wales could have drawn the test match in the final minutes, their repeated strikes to the All Blacks did little real damage.
And this is but one of Wales’ problems.
First of all, even when considering New Zealand’s good defensive patterns, for Wales not to be able to score a solitary try when apparently crafting their entire game plan to scoring one is an issue.
Second, while the constant appearance of the Welsh forwards in the backline for greater running numbers may excuse this, again the Red Dragons were found wanting at the breakdown.
As it was in the Six Nations, they struggled to compete at crucial times in the loose. For a team that once proudly strutted around Europe as the dominant Northern power, this is not good enough. It is even more surprising when considering Gatland’s background as a New Zealand coach.
However, the worst aspect was lack of adjustment when it was clear that their initial tactics were not working.
The All Blacks have learned the hard way that not having either a “plan B” or ability to switch strategies is simply not good enough at the highest level. They learned this in Cardiff in 2007 (anyone want to take a drop goal!), and again this year at the Springboks (don’t run the ball from your 22 against a South African rush defence).
Gatland and Wales spent so much time talking down the All Blacks that they may have actually talked them up with a twisted form of reverse psychology. Post match they spent so much time focusing on Carter’s tackle and not on what they did wrong - to show that Wales could in fact be on the wrong page altogether.
Wales are a good team.
They may be the only ones standing between Australia and a Grand Slam at the end of the month, and it could again fall to the Red Dragons to prove that the Northern nations can compete with the might of the South.
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