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MARSEILLE - Fresh from squashing Italy, the All Blacks rugby World Cup steamroller will ease down a couple of gears before crunching into Portugal in Lyon this weekend.
New Zealand will give special consideration to how they approach playing the tournament newcomers for the sake of safety.
Also,
assistant coach Wayne Smith said the last thing they wanted was to humiliate the Portuguese, who will do well to keep the scoreline under the 76-14 hiding suffered by Italy here on Saturday.
Smith smiled when asked if the test shaped as an awkward one for the All Blacks.
"Probably not as awkward as Portugal," he said.
"Clearly there's going to be a gulf in class but you've got to respect the fact it's going a huge day for them and for their rugby historically."
New Zealand are likely to field close to their second choice team but they will still be several classes above their European foe in terms of size and conditioning.
For that reason, the All Blacks will be sensible in how they handle collision aspects of the game, particularly at scrum time, to reduce the risk of serious injury.
"We will probably discuss that, but you can't disrespect the other team. They have qualified for the World Cup, they are keen to have a crack at us, it's going to be a huge day for them," Smith said.
"You don't want to be stupid and you don't want to humiliate anyone. Hopefully that won't be the case. Hopefully it will be a contest that people can enjoy and that the players can enjoy.
"There will be some sensitivity but we have to be aware of keeping our standards high."
The All Blacks players enjoyed a day off today, a chance to reflect on Saturday's impressive opening foray, particularly the first 19 minutes in which they averaged two points a minute before the heat finally started to impact on their high skill levels.
"I likened them to 15 cans of coke that have been shaken up and then opened at the same time," Smith said.
"We knew there was going to be energy and enthusiasm and we were hoping it was going to be clinical."
The 11-try performance was especially satisfying for Smith, who watched the plans they hatched in the leadup performed to a tee in the opening exchanges. The two tries off chip-kicks by first five-eighth Daniel Carter had been planned all week when a weakness was identified in the Italian defence.
"It was the decision-making that was clinical," he said.
"Yesterday was a day that the boys saw it really clearly. They did their homework, knew what to look for, knew the plays that would work against what they saw, and applied them."
Smith wasn't convinced New Zealand's performance had sent the warning shot across the tournament that some had believed.
"I don't know how much other sides will take notice of that," he said.
"I think the Italians probably took notice, they were pretty overwhelmed afterwards I think."
- NZPA
