Ben Smith with daughter Annabelle after defeating the Wallabies in Dunedin in 2017. Photo / Getty Images
Ben Smith with daughter Annabelle after defeating the Wallabies in Dunedin in 2017. Photo / Getty Images
Some of the All Blacks' biggest fans won't be on hand to cheer on the men in black as they chase a third successive Rugby World Cup win, with several players opting not to take their families to Japan.
The 31-strong All Blacks squad will fly out to Japan onSeptember 9, 12 days out from their campaign kick-off against fellow tournament heavyweights Japan in Yokohama City.
Thousands of fans will be travelling to Japan to support the Kieran Read-captained team as they seek a trio of Webb Ellis Cup triumphs; including partners, children and parents of squad members.
All Blacks assistant coach Ian Foster revealed that management had been working with members of the team and their partners on individual plans which "suits them best".
He said although many of the players will have loved ones spend time with them during the tournament, some had decided the World Cup was a no-go zone for their family.
That was down to their desire to have no distractions in Japan which could potentially take concentration off the ultimate goal of back-to-back-to-back wins.
"For some, they actually just prefer to switch off and be in the environment and deal with family by phone," Foster told the Herald on Sunday.
Foster said it had been a juggling act for players and their families to come up with the plans that worked for them.
One of the biggest factors had been exactly what stage they should bring loved ones over; either during the pool-play phase or the knockout stage of the tournament which begins on October 19.
All Blacks assistant coach Ian Foster, left and pictured with head coach Steve Hansen, says it is important players get away from their hotels for downtime in Japan. Photo / Brett Phibbs
Several members of the 2007 Rugby World Cup squad were caught out when they arranged for family to travel over for the latter stages of that year's tournament, only for the team to be knocked out in the quarter-finals by France.
"World Cups are tough because it is hard to bring families over for the whole time, because it is a long time," Foster said.
"And it is hard to know when to bring families over because you have something called playoffs which are do or die."
There is no shortage of family men in the All Blacks.
The All Blacks dads include Read who is the proud dad of two daughters and a son, midfielder Sonny Bill Williams has three children, fullback/wing Ben Smith has a boy and a girl, hooker Dane Coles has two children, while veteran halfback Aaron Smith last week welcomed his first child, a boy called Luka, into the world.
Foster said regardless of whether players had family with them for stints during the World Cup, members of the squad would be encouraged to get away from the team hotel and soak up some Japanese culture and sights.
It was a move which could both help educate them on another part of the world, and also help them handle pressures as they chase a third tournament win in a row.
"As we have learnt before, we have got a job to do over there," he said.
"But one of the ways to absorb the pressure of a high pressure environment is to have switch-off times where guys can go out and relax and enjoy being a little bit of a tourist in a different country.
"That is a big part about touring, something we think we do pretty well, and we have to embrace that again in Japan. Getting people out and about and enjoying the sights and managing that [is important]."
The All Blacks will play matches in Yokohama City, Oita Prefecture, Tokyo and Toyota City during pool-play. Play-off matches they play in the knock-out phase will be held in Yokohama City and Tokyo.
Last year they spent two weeks in Japan, playing the Wallabies in Yokohama and Japan in Tokyo.
"We did that for a reason," he said. "We stayed at similar hotels that we will be staying in this time and used similar training environments.
"Our guys really enjoyed it. They liked getting out and enjoying the local food and the local culture. There is something very welcoming about it."
