Sonny Bill Williams of the All Blacks makes a break during match against the Wallabies. Photo / Getty Images
The All Blacks are likely to make small but significant tactical adjustments this week rather than any major overhaul of what they have been doing.
Tied in with that, they are likely to make only a small number of personnel changes. As much as there are World Cup selection questions
that need to be answered at Eden Park, there is a Bledisloe Cup that has to be retained and the latter will take priority when it comes to picking the team.
All Black coach Steve Hansen believes the players need to have a more streamlined tactical approach this week where they rely more on simple, direct, proactive football.
"There was a lot of hesitation at times and I keep thinking back to every year when we play in June we get what we are getting at the moment," he said. "That's because there is a lot in our game plan and sometimes when you are over-thinking you become slow and it clutters your brain. Again, we need to go back this week and say what is really critical for our game. Let's nail that and if we do that then we give ourselves a chance to play."
