Coach Dave Rennie said on Sunday he only has time to implement a “simple structure” for his first assignment in charge of the All Blacks, a heavyweight showdown with France.
Rennie’s short 10-day preparation time means he’ll establish a basic gameplan for their opening Nations Championship Test in Christchurch on Saturday. The former Wallabies coach was named to replace the sacked Scott Robertson as New Zealand’s head coach in March but has had little involvement since because of a club contract in Japan that finished this month.
Rennie said he had only coached a handful of the 34-strong playing group previously.
“I’m enjoying it, it’s been good getting to know them better,” he said, after the team arrived in Christchurch.
“A lot of it now is around a simple structure from an attack point of view, getting really good connection defensively, and we just want the guys to get out there and be really clear and play.”
Rennie said star fullback Will Jordan has overcome a calf muscle complaint, while key forwards Wallace Sititi and Tupou Vaa’i have recovered from head knocks. All three missed the closing stages of Super Rugby this month because of injury.
Rennie played down the suggestion that France will be vulnerable because their coach, Fabien Galthié, hasn’t selected players from Toulouse and Montpellier, who contested this weekend’s Top 14 domestic final.
“People will talk about the fact that Toulouse are playing this weekend, and so they’ll be missing them, but there’ll be 11 players from Bordeaux, the European champions,” Rennie said.
“France have 28 professional sides, but they have the greatest depth in world rugby, and so they’ve always got a lot of quality players to pick from.
“Fabien’s smart, and so they’ll have a plan around what things look like. They’ll be a good side.”
Veteran hooker Codie Taylor said Rennie had made an immediate impression with the players.
“He’s not afraid to be the boss, he definitely owns the room when he speaks, but in a way that’s not too daunting,” Taylor said. “It’s just in a way that you respect and you know what he wants out there on the field.” | AFP
