Henry praises mental skills guru Enoka

New Zealand’s World Cup winning coach Graham Henry heaped praise on the All Blacks mental skills guru following Sunday’s defeat of Ireland.

Henry, who described the win as one of ‘the great comebacks’ in their proud rugby history says huge credit must go to Gilbert Enoka for instilling a never say die spirit in the team.

“This All Blacks team has got that ability (to come back),” Henry said. “They’ve got the mental skills. What Gilbert Enoka has done with that team in the mental skills area is phenomenal. It’s a real pat on everybody’s back, (captain) Richie McCaw and the boys who played, but Gilbert’s in charge of that mental skills area and obviously they are getting stronger and stronger. This team has shown on a number of occasions they never lose their composure. They just keep on doing the right thing.”

The comeback from 0-19 was one of the biggest in All Black history and Henry rated it up there with the best. “It has to be one of the great comebacks, I’d imagine.”

Another All Black great, Brian Lochore added: “I can’t think off-hand of a side that has been that far behind and, really, with less than a minute to go we were still in a great deal of trouble. But they believed in themselves and came back. It was a massive effort. It was clear the Irish were up for it when you listened to the anthem. It was clear on their faces they were going to come out and have a fair crack, which they did.”