All Blacks v Ireland: Ian Foster says quarter-final is ‘the final for us’ - lessons learned from 2019

The All Blacks and Ian Foster are under no illusion as to the stakes of Sunday’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final against Ireland. A win against the world’s No 1 team catapults them into favouritism to lift the Webb Ellis Cup - a loss ends Foster and many senior players’ tenure in black in disappointment.

It is a rare occasion that an All Blacks team heads into a test as underdogs - even rarer still for it to be a World Cup quarter-final. No one is more aware of the situation they find themselves in than those in the New Zealand camp.

Beating Ireland in this quarter-final would be the most significant achievement of Ian Foster’s All Blacks’ coaching career. To topple the best team in the world having been outplayed on your own grass just a year before would show not just a physical turnaround, but the mental fortitude and resilience that has been a hallmark of the All Blacks and set them apart from their peers.

They say that World Cups are about winning three games of rugby and New Zealand’s first of those three could not be a more tantalising prospect. There can be no looking ahead beyond this and Ian Foster told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking that he and his team are preparing as if they are playing for the Webb Ellis Cup on Sunday.

“As far as we’re concerned, this is the final for us and we just want to go in with that attitude and, and, if we’re left standing at the end of it, then we’ll refocus after that.”

It was attitude that let the All Blacks down in 2019 - they were unprepared for the intensity that the English brought to the semifinal - something then-coach Sir Steve Hansen has said he has to “take the blame” for as the team’s mentality was “soft”.

Foster says a lesson learned from 2019 is that at World Cups there is only one match that is important - the one you are about to play.

“At the end of the day, it comes down to a weekend where four teams stay and four teams go.”

Matches like these are why international rugby fans obsess over World Cups - four years come down to 80 minutes and Foster says this is the opportunity for the All Blacks to prove they are still a force in world rugby.

“We know how big this test is. They’re the world number one at the moment, haven’t been beaten in 17 games. Playing good, confident. What more can you ask for as a chance to test yourself?”

Form’s relevance declines as you reach the knockout stages - the All Blacks have run up big totals against inferior sides in pool play - while Ireland won an arm wrestle against South Africa to then run rampant over Scotland to finish their pool.

Foster told Hosking that while he has enjoyed the way his side have played, they know Ireland’s approach will make it more difficult to play their brand.

“I think the flipside of it is we’ve had some games that have been a bit bit more open and a bit freer because of the scorelines... this next game is gonna require us to sort of get more involved in an arm wrestle-type rugby.”

He says there is confidence in the New Zealand set-up, they are strengthened by returning players and he is pleased with the options he has available.

“We’ve had a number of players who missed the first part of this tournament through injury, it’s about getting them back through the last few games, pleased with the state of the squad. We just can’t wait.”

All Blacks v Ireland

8am, Sunday

Follow live updates: nzherald.co.nz

Listen to commentary: Join Elliott Smith on Newstalk ZB, Gold Sport and iHeartRadio, or catch the ACC on iHeartRadio or Hauraki

Get full coverage of the Rugby World Cup.