Sam Whitelock during warm-up. Photo / Getty Images
Sam Whitelock during warm-up. Photo / Getty Images
OPINION:
If last weekend's 104-14 victory by the All Blacks over the United States in Washington was a "good experience" in terms of furthering the rugby education of half a dozen of Ian Foster's younger players, (along with providing New Zealand Rugby with extra cash), Sunday's should qualify as potentiallylife-changing, or "useful" as the understated head coach would probably have it.
After the recent test, stand-in skipper Sam Whitelock found himself commenting favourably on the atmosphere outside FedEx Stadium which was lifted by barbecues and tailgate parties, but a test against Wales in Cardiff on a late Saturday afternoon is a whole different smorgasbord, even without a late-night visit to the city's notorious Chippy Alley.
There is nothing quite like a test in Cardiff. The Herald reported this week that the roof is likely to be left off the sold-out Principality Stadium in a bid to mitigate the effects of Covid (incidentally, all spectators are required to provide proof of a recent negative Covid test), but the singing and general noise will likely be a very new experience for several members of the All Blacks' match-day squad.
Neither Richie Mo'unga, Dalton Papalii, Jordie Barrett, Akira Ioane, Luke Jacobson, Sevu Reece, nor Will Jordan have played in Cardiff and in fact Ioane, Jacobson, Reece and Jordan, who are all likely to be involved, have never played a test in Europe.
Given the relative strengths of the two squads, the All Blacks will likely have far too much firepower for the Welsh but the visitors will be examined at the breakdown and defensively at a level far superior to the Eagles. They will have to work hard for every possession and may even have to make a few tackles.
There has been a strong "learning" narrative attached to this season by Foster and also injured skipper Sam Cane, who said before he returned from injury and joined the squad in Washington that the various absences this year caused by injury and childbirth would help the All Blacks in the long term and particularly at the 2023 World Cup.
Everyone attached to the squad would have learned plenty in the two tests against South Africa in Australia and it's over the next four weeks in Cardiff, Rome, Dublin and Paris in full stadiums in front of partisan crowds that the next most valuable lessons will come.
If that sounds like the All Blacks are continuing to wage a phoney war before the real business starts with the long-anticipated World Cup pool game against France in Paris in just under 680 days, nothing could be further from the truth.
All Blacks No 10 Richie Mo'unga signs autographs for fans after playing against the USA Eagles. Photo / Getty Images
This test, with half a dozen Wales players unavailable due to their not being released by their English clubs, has been described variously as a "sham" and an "insult" by commentators and it's neither of those things, either, as those who have willingly spend up to $200 on a ticket will probably agree.
It will be a test in the truest sense, and as the team bus inches its way to the stadium behind the police horses, past the Angel Hotel where late All Blacks' prop Keith Murdoch's life changed forever in 1972, within sight of all of those drinking lager from plastic cups on the corners, and down the ramp into one of the world's great rugby stadiums, all of those on board will know it long before Bread of Heaven begins ringing out.
There is something tragically romantic about Wales' rugby history against the All Blacks. Most supporters know their last win came in 1953, one of only three after their first in 1905. Their support may waver occasionally but it holds together because, like many New Zealanders, it's locked into their DNA.
It shouldn't be forgotten, either, that they're the current Six Nations champions up against the Rugby Championship winners. There may be harder tests ahead in the not-too-distant future for the All Blacks but it's another worthy stitch in the rich tapestry of history shared between the two rugby nations. As the old hymn says, "Feed me till I want no more".
