Scarcity makes the heart grow fonder. Or, in the case of the All Blacks, hungrier.
The rich history, the upsets and triumphs through 1987, 1999, 2007, 2011 and 2015, New Zealand and France share at Rugby World Cups is well traversed.
One of the curiosities, though, surrounding this weekend’s World Cup opening match in Paris is it will be the second time in the last five years the French renaissance under Fabien Galthié confronts the All Blacks.
In rugby’s saturated professional age, such scarcity is rare. In any sporting context less is, indeed, more.
France's Damian Penaud scores during the 2021 test against the All Blacks. Photosport
Yet another layer of intrigue lies in France, as World Cup hosts, selecting the All Blacks as their pool opponents to open the tournament. After their last meeting in Paris, perhaps the French believe they have little to fear.
On that occasion, the All Blacks concluded their challenging 2021 Covid-bubble tour - after spending 10 weeks away from home - with successive defeats in the northern hemisphere for the first time in the professional age. Those twin setbacks, with defeat in Paris following the loss in Dublin, pointed to the downward spiral to come in 2022 before the rebuild began.
While the All Blacks team has altered markedly since their last loss to France, with Joe Moody, Akira Ioane, George Bridge, Quinn Tupaea, George Bower, Brad Weber and Angus Ta’avao among those no longer present, those painful memories have been rehashed this week to serve reminders of the threats the French pose.
“There’s still a knot in our gut from the last time we were here,” All Blacks defence coach Scott McLeod said as the team prepares in Lyon this week. “That hurt and we’ve held onto that a little bit.”
France rocked the All Blacks from the outset of their last meeting. Two maul tries and another from classy playmaker Romain Ntamack, who is out of the World Cup through injury, fashioned a 24-6 halftime lead.
While the All Blacks responded to surge within two points in the second half, footage of Ntamack sparking a match-turning breakout from his in-goal after beating Richie Mo’unga and Jordie Barrett has featured in team meetings.
“A couple of clips have been shown which still hurts the boys,” McLeod said. “A few buttoned off around the kick chase and we relaxed thinking we would get them. We didn’t. They ran out and around us and got through us. That suits their style of play. They look for the space, run into it well and feed off each other so we can’t allow that.
“The players are sick to death of seeing that, particularly a couple who featured in it. That’s the hurt for them. We want the players to feel that a little bit and not let that happen again.”
David Havili emerged from the bench for the last 27 minutes of that 40-25 defeat. Reviewing the tape isn’t pleasant but, in the context of this weekend, it is necessary.
“It gives you the opportunity to get better,” Havili said. “That’s what we’re about as professional players. You take the tough losses on the chin; you move forward and get better. That’s what we’re going to do this weekend. We’ve put a lot of lessons into these last couple of trainings.”
Preparing for France and its combination of forward power, flamboyance and off-the-cuff tendencies is difficult for those with frequent exposure.
Despite not facing France for two years, and the three-year absence prior to that loss, the All Blacks are confident their analysis that extends to head coach Ian Foster and assistants Joe Schmidt and Jason Ryan attending Six Nations fixtures earlier this year will glean everything they need to know.
“We see similarity in the way they play, particularly the way they want to play unstructured and use the ball. We can’t switch off at any stage,” McLeod said. “We think they’ve added to their game in terms of kick space so they’ve got more of a threat which we’re aware of and preparing for.
“They’re a massive pack who are mobile and have skill. They’re very good at driving but also working around their lineout so the work we’ve done we hope has strengthened us there. We’re ready for that, we hope. On the flip side, they use the ball with their flair and their ability to see space, to run, pass and kick to it we respect that a lot so we’ve worked hard at that.”
What better way to seek redemption than to crash France’s opening party in Paris, then?
“Feeling training the last couple of days the loss to them last time; our performance against South Africa and the opening game are all combined for a heightened sense around this game. That’s one we thrive in, and we love.”
Liam Napier has been a sports journalist since 2010, and his work has taken him to World Cups in rugby, netball and cricket, boxing world title fights and Commonwealth Games.
