All Blacks not entirely happy despite record triumph

DESPITE racking up a record 66 points in their win over Ireland on Saturday, the All Blacks are refusing to pat themselves on the back too vigorously.

It’s a mood shared by the notoriously difficult to please New Zealand media, who laid into Jamie Heaslip for accruing an early red card which ruined the hosts’ chances of figuring out exactly where they’re at in terms of their development, 16 months out from the World Cup on home soil.

And All Blacks coach Graham Henry found fault with much of his side’s performance, despite giving them a “seven point five out of 10”.

He said: “I think we ran out of puff. The Irish played very well (in the second half) and they opened us up. They have a number of world class players in their back-line so we have plenty to work on.

“There is plenty of running in the game and a few of our guys haven’t played for two or three weeks and they ran out of gas. We got a bit loose and lost our intensity in the second half.”

Henry will want his side to replicate the precision and power of their first-half performance against Wales on Saturday, and reckons New Zealand will get a tougher test.

Skipper Richie McCaw, the target of two attempts by Heaslip to connect with his knee in the 15th minute, admitted the red card ended the game as a contest.

“It put them under pressure and the game was over after that,” said McCaw. “That’s what happens, though, when ill-discipline gets in the way. We played a very good first half but our intensity on defence was not what you would have expected had the game been a bit tighter.”

The New Zealand Herald rugby correspondent, Gregor Paul, was among those unimpressed with Heaslip’s actions, calling him a “plonker”.

“Thanks a bunch, Jamie Heaslip, for ruining a perfectly average test match,” he wrote. “If he isn’t feeling like a prize goose (after that), he should be. His red card turned not much of a contest into a non-contest. Ireland, thanks to Heaslip, just didn’t ask any questions.’’