Rugby: Winning could be All Blacks' worst enemy, warns Smith

All Black assistant coach Wayne Smith. Photo / Getty Images

International rugby coaches need to be a mix of psychologist, caregiver, tactician, innovator, sounding board and disciplinarian.

It's a complicated amalgam, a puzzle that changes daily and demands a huge input from those who perform those duties for the All Blacks.

Wayne Smith has been turning his attention to those areas since his promotion in 1998 as assistant in the John Hart era to a head coach's role then as Graham Henry's sidekick for the past seven seasons.

Smith has a wealth of knowledge, experience and views on driving sides at the top level.

He, like the country, revelled in the All Blacks' 32-12 victory last week against the Springboks but knows that makes round two here on Saturday a shade more difficult.

"Winning has always threatened to be your enemy," Smith said.

"It is always a challenge that as you win it can erode away the things that made you win in the first place. So that has always been the job of rugby coaches round the world to prepare for games as though you had lost."

There was a great deal of heat on the players to get to the level they achieved at Eden Park. If anything, expectation had been raised rather than relaxed.

A week ago, the All Blacks were able to smell the pressure, they could watch and hear the public and media scrutiny and that tended to help the build-up.

That fragrance had changed for the second test but Smith felt the right odours were coming from the team.

He cited the All Blacks' second-test win against the Lions in 2005 and their victory against France in Lyons a year later as times when the team had to repeat after significant wins.

The challenges were to dismiss any complacency and rekindle the desire that was such a motivation last week at Eden Park.

"When that external pressure comes off slightly you risk your performance buttoning off with it," said Smith.

"So our job now is to make sure while the external pressure is off the internal expectations are high so we are keeping our performances exactly where it was."

The athletic width and style the All Blacks used was an advance on the vision the coaches had for the team last season.

The law changes, especially at the breakdown, had allowed them to pursue the approach.

"We were branded reckless and irresponsible in South Africa [last year] and we did not come up to the level skill-wise but we knew what we wanted to do, knew how we wanted to do it but just did not come up to the challenge.

"We had a feeling about where the game needed to go because it was never going to survive as it was. We did not think it would motivate our players playing that way so we swam against the current to some extent.

"We were not really successful until probably Australia here [33-6 in Wellington] and we started building for the end-of-year tour but it was still difficult.

"Then in France we came up against a team which wanted to play as well."

Smith felt the All Blacks' rivals would start copying their style if they continued to be successful.

The Springboks' response would be one of the more fascinating aspects this Saturday.

"I think they will try and do things better with greater physicality. I'm sure there will be some unexpected things thrown in as they have the athletes."