Henry: All Blacks have a lot of work to do before Tri-Nations

ALL BLACKS coach Graham Henry admitted his team are “nowhere near ready” for the upcoming Tri-Nations Series campaign.

Henry’s much-changed team ground out a 25-19 victory over Argentina in Buenos Aires on Saturday, in a game peppered by penalties and errors.

The All Blacks also had to contest the final five minutes with only 13 men after yellow cards for backs Leon Macdonald and Sam Tuitupou.

“We scored three tries to one. I guess the people at home were on the edge of their couches,” Henry said. “They put on a lot of pressure in the forwards, we didn’t function particularly well there, but we did get three tries to one and we probably blew a couple of opportunities to take it out of being tight.

“We’re pleased. The boys played with plenty of character and got through. But we’ve got plenty of work to do ahead of the Tri-Nations, obviously.”

The Pumas’ tight-knit side, fresh from defeating Wales, were quicker into the game than the All Blacks, many of whom had taken four weeks off after the Super 14 finals.

Henry defended his decision to use a completely different starting XV from the Tests against Ireland, but said there was much work to do.

“There’s always risks in the strategy,” he said. “The idea was to let them recover and recondition, not rotate, so they came back well. The game today will be good for them coming into the next one.

“We’ve a lot of work to do. We’re nowhere near it yet. But hopefully the guys are fresh and they’re raring to go.”

Henry and the party return to New Zealand ahead of naming his Tri-Nations squad this week, with the competition curtain-raiser coming on July 8, against Australia in Christchurch.

Meanwhile France confirmed themselves as major contenders for next year’s World Cup by beating South Africa 36-26 in Cape Town to climb above them into second in the world rankings.

Les Bleus overturned a 23-11 deficit with half an hour left to play to end the Springboks’ 13-match unbeaten run at home.

French captain Fabien Pelous believes France have every chance of becoming world champions when they host the event next year.

“It is one year out from the World Cup and it was important that we set down a standard, and yes, I feel we can win the World Cup,” he said.