The All Blacks have the chance to end what has been a painful 2025 campaign on a high against Wales at the Principality Stadium on Saturday following another week from hell for Scott Robertson’s camp.
Saturday 22 November
Wales | Draw | All Blacks
Handicap
Wales | New Zealand
It’s almost as if a national state of emergency has taken place in Kiwiland following the All Blacks’ Grand Slam-ending 19-33 defeat to England in London last weekend. Many pundits, including former players and coaches, have all piled on in the wake of that latest performance, one in which the world’s No 2 team raced into a 12-0 lead before being comprehensively outplayed by a George Ford-and Ollie Lawrence-inspired English outfit.
In a calendar year that has already seen the once all-conquering team fall to record losses to Argentina and South Africa, the setback in London has become the latest unwanted blot on Robertson’s portfolio, and although his job remains secure for now, there are many who believe he and his coaching staff are well and truly on thin ice.
Many are already calling for Robertson to get the sack, but the World Cup being just two years away has made that a genuinely unthinkable scenario, with any replacement unlikely to have enough time to change the fortunes of the Scott Barrett-led side.
When the legendary Crusaders coach Robertson took over the reins from Ian Foster last year, it was expected that he would immediately transform a side that had been on a slow decline for a while back into a winning machine. The reality though has been very different, with history now looking back more favourably on the much-criticised Foster era, as the current generation of New Zealand players continues to fall short of the standards set by those of old.
They’ve a trip to Cardiff ahead this week as they look to bounce back big in typical All Blacks fashion, with Robertson likely to make a raft of changes and give certain players more game time in key positions. Considering how ineffective his bench was against England’s “Pom Squad”, it will be interesting to see which combinations he selects here as he continues to search for solutions to several problem-areas, chief among them their ineptitude in the air.
For Wales, who did well to see off Japan by one-point last week for the second time this year, even a defeat of under 15-points should be considered a good result. For all New Zealand’s problems at the minute, there’s no denying they remain miles better than the current Celtic strugglers, with coach Steve Tandy still coming to grips with his new role.
Exeter Chiefs and Welsh second-rower Dafydd Jenkins made headlines recently when he said the hosts will head into the contest believing they can indeed claim a first victory over the southern hemisphere juggernaut since 1953. But while that may be music to the ears of rugby romantics all over the world, such a result actually materialising would surely not be too far off the Miracle of Brighton.
Verdict: New Zealand on the minus
As much as many of us would oh so love to buy into the words of the bold Jenkins, in reality the tourists should wrap up 2025 in emphatic style and record a 34th-straight win over the Welsh.
