All Blacks skipper Ardie Savea reacts during the side's win over Scotland. Photo / Photosport
How much fuel is left in the All Blacks tank?
It’s a pressing question that hovers over the quest to all but seal their fifth Grand Slam at Twickenham this weekend.
Motivation won’t be a problem but after last weekend’s torrid test at Murrayfield, where the All Blacks, after conceding three yellow cards, forced themselves to scramble one man short for half an hour, the petrol light could come on early against a combative and confident England team.
While the All Blacks pulled off another late, great escape against Scotland, thanks to Damian McKenzie’s heroics, there were times they were hunched over and collectively out on their feet.
Understandably so, too, after making 171 tackles, missing only 18.
Those sustained efforts to defend their line for prolonged periods in the second half, though, threaten to zap legs for the biggest test of their Grand Slam tour.
Scotland aren’t widely known as a hugely physical team but last week proved a brutal encounter.
All Blacks prop Ethan de Groot’s left eye needed stitches and had closed over. McKenzie finished the match with blood streaming down his face from two gashes. The All Blacks lost Caleb Clarke to a head knock that will force another backline reshuffle, after already farewelling vice-captain Jordie Barrett on this venture north.
One final push – in their 12th test of the year – before finishing the season against Wales in Cardiff is within the All Blacks’ grasp, but fatigue could be a factor.
Captain Scott Barrett’s return to start will inject one much-needed fresh body. Loose forwards Wallace Sititi and Peter Lakai and lock Fabian Holland’s young frames should bounce back quickly but other influential figures such as Codie Taylor, Ardie Savea, Beauden Barrett and Will Jordan have carried heavy loads this season.
At their usual Lensbury base in southwest London, All Blacks coach Scott Robertson is expected to lighten the team’s training load this week but, by the weekend, he is confident there will be no lingering fatigue.
“We’re a few games in. We’ve had a decent schedule, so you manage them through training and their mental and physical load. It’s great here, you walk off the back deck and you’re at training so there’s no bus time,” Robertson said.
“We had a four-week period before we came over to get ourselves physically ready. We freshened up and got a bit of UV before heading over here. The boys are fresh but battle-hardened.”
The All Blacks pride themselves as being one of the fittest teams in world rugby. That was evident in Chicago when they blew Ireland away in the final quarter with three tries in a dynamic burst of attacking rugby.
Clinching New Zealand’s first Grand Slam in 15 years remains alive after late flourishes against Ireland and Scotland, but attempting to pull off another heist against England won’t be easy.
England boast significantly greater strength in depth than Ireland and Scotland and are, therefore, unlikely to fade in a similar manner as the All Blacks’ first two Grand Slam foes.
At Twickenham, with the wave of the 80,000-strong crowd behind them, England can be incredibly difficult to stop.
The New Zealand bench has been decisive in determining results on this tour, with front-rowers Tamaiti Williams, Samisoni Taukei’aho and Pasilio Tosi – the latter widely underrated – injecting notable impact alongside McKenzie.
England, though, have developed their own potent bench, with 20-year-old British and Irish Lions loose forward Henry Pollock, wing Henry Arundell, playmaker Marcus Smith and powerful New Zealand-raised flanker Chandler Cunningham-South among their potential replacements this weekend.
While England are riding the crest of their nine-match unbeaten surge, the All Blacks will source confidence from their recent dominance of Steve Borthwick’s improving side.
The New Zealanders are unbeaten in their last five tests at Twickenham – a stretch dating back to 2012 that includes the 25-25 draw in their final match of the 2022 season.
England’s last win against the All Blacks was in the 2019 World Cup semifinals, with Robertson presiding over three of New Zealand’s last four successes in a row.
Those recent results are somewhat misleading, though, with England blowing the opening test of Robertson’s reign in Dunedin after Marcus Smith missed crucial kicks. England also rued a late missed George Ford dropped goal this time last year against the All Blacks at Twickenham.
“When you look at the recent history of our test matches, they’ve always come down to small margins at the end of games,” Robertson said. “History and how you’ve done it matters. We’ll talk about what it’s like to play at Twickenham and the occasion of it all.
“It’s pleasing you can hang tough and find a way. You can draw on the belief side of it but this test match, you’ve got to start again.”
Starting well to quell the vocal English crowd is important but so, too, will the energy in late legs be telling this weekend.
Liam Napier is a Senior Sports Journalist and Rugby Correspondent for the New Zealand Herald. He is a co-host of the Rugby Direct podcast.