All Blacks: All signs point to victory

The All Blacks have been warned to keep up pressure to prevent a Wallabies rebound. Photo / Sarah Ivey

If the All Blacks are climbing the rungs of greatness, they must show a ruthless touch again tonight against the Wallabies.

They need to exhibit that killer instinct which separates the good from the best, they need to squeeze any hope and optimism from their transtasman rivals.

That done they can enjoy retention of the Bledisloe Cup and regaining the Tri-Nations trophy with two tests to run.

All that ceremony is getting ahead of the kickoff which will be an absolute no-no for an All Black side intent on revisiting the fine work they have shown so far against the Springboks and Wallabies.

The eighth win on end against Australia in Melbourne, should become nine in Christchurch.

A week ago the All Blacks were helped by the match officials and a fractured Wallaby team which froze at critical moments.

There will be those who argue you make your own luck, others who maintain you take it.

Whatever those debates, the All Black philosophy tonight must be all about imposing their game on the visitors, exposing them to the uncomfortable glare of pressure and forcing them to scrabble for answers.

Centre Conrad Smith said the winning sequence was great but it had been tough coming from a mid-game deficit in half those tests.

"Last week was pretty special but there have always been times when we have really been digging deep," he said.

The All Blacks were down in Sydney and Brisbane last year and struggling with the last quarter to run.

"It certainly hasn't felt like we have won that many in a row and that's probably the reason why," he said.

This test would be the gauge on whether they had opened a gap on the Wallabies. Melbourne was an odd test with two early chargedown tries and yellow cards which turned the game on its head.

"There are still two more games and if they get up, there will be some different questions being asked," Smith said.

His coaching namesake concurs. Wayne Smith warned that the Wallabies could bounce back quickly just as the All Blacks had against the Boks after being pasted last season.

What happened in Melbourne or elsewhere was irrelevant, this was a new event.

"Past success guarantees nothing, you have just got to keep working at it, try and keep an edge, build every game like it is the last one and that is what we try and do," Smith said.

So New Zealand's rugby audience will judge whether the All Blacks can find the switch again, whether they have distanced themselves from the Wallabies and whether they are grasping that vital killer instinct.

They are experienced; they are blending some of the younger talent into the senior seams, and they are just 12 tests shy of the next World Cup campaign.

Forecasters have been predicting very chilly conditions for this test, perhaps some showers and uncertainty about how the weather will impact on the All Blacks' freewheeling intentions.

When the man-down Wallabies put on some of the second-half squeeze in Melbourne, they made progress. By then, most argued the All Blacks had the test won and shipped an urgency level.

They have to regain that venom, up front, because that is where they can hurt the Wallabies. They look vulnerable, as most sides do, if they are attacked repeatedly.

Keven Mealamu, with his snappy bursts, Owen Franks and Brad Thorn, with their power, Richie McCaw and Kieran Read, with their athletic busts - these men have to lay the foundation for an All Black success.

Half of the pack and master navigator Daniel Carter play regularly at tonight's venue, they know the quirks about conditions and the surface.

The All Blacks believe they are mastering their strategies, they are confident in their ability and tonight, 38,000 spectators will turn up to watch if reality matches belief.

THE EIGHT MATE

2008
* All Blacks 39 - Wallabies 10, Auckland
* All Blacks 28 - Wallabies 24, Brisbane
* All Blacks 19 - Wallabies 14, Hong Kong

2009
* All Blacks 22 - Wallabies 16, Auckland
* All Blacks 19 - Wallabies 18, Sydney
* All Blacks 33 - Wallabies 6, Wellington
* All Blacks 32 - Wallabies 19, Tokyo

2010
* All Blacks 49 - Wallabies 28, Melbourne