The All Blacks will be looking for a vastly improved showing when they take on an understrength French outfit that ran them close this past weekend. While the hosts will be pumped up for this one, they will need to be wary of this French outfit that contains a number of players who are looking to prove a point.
New Zealand v France | saturday 12 July | sky stadium
To win (80 Mins)
New Zealand | Draw | France
Handicap
New Zealand | France
For all the talk of the French disrespecting the Kiwis by sending an understrength side to the ‘land of the long white cloud’, the men in black simpl couldn’t back it up as they stuttered to a 31-27 victory in the First Test.
If you were marking the Kiwis performance out of ten they’d probably come in at a solid six. Yes, they weren’t great but the French side were better than expected and did make things difficult for scott Roberston’s men who found themselves before the 20-minute mark.
The Kiwis would hit back before half-time, however, with tries from Will Jordan, Ardie savea and Jordie Barrett seeing them go into the break 21-13 up. The French would then hit back early in the second stanza to bring the scores to 21-20. The two sides would then trade a try a piece before the All Blacks would start dominating possession and territory. For all their dominance though,they were unable to add more than three points to their tally with interventions from the TMO seeing two tries ruled out.
So where to for Robinson and his charges now? Well, they need to build on the positives from last week with their set piece firing and some solid attacking intent. They’ll also be hoping for a different TMO as last week’s one screwed them royally!
For the French, it’ll be more of the same that Fabien Galthie asks of his charges who were inventive with ball-in-hand and dogged on defence and at the breakdown. Perhaps a bit more street smartness will be asked for from some of the less experienced heads.
Looking at the team news now, Sevu Reece has been ruled out which will see Caleb Clarke take his place with Rieko Ioane shifting wings. In the forward pack, Patrick Tuipolotu comes n for the injured Scott Barett. The French are yet to announce their match day quad but it seems it will be a very similar side to the one that took to the pitch last week.
Verdict: New Zealand (-)
There were some very positive signs for the Kiwis last week and if they can be a bit more clinical – and the TMO stays out of things – I expect them to win it at a canter.
