All Blacks unfazed by powerful Lions

Mils Muliaina (left) and Justin Marshall share a laugh during the All Blacks training session at North Harbour Stadium yesterday. Picture / Fotopress

The All Blacks will not adjust their skeleton test preparation for the Lions series even after digesting what they felt was a powerful start from the tourists.

Any temptation to increase the workload was rejected yesterday by assistant coach Steve Hansen in favour of keeping the All Blacks as fresh as possible.

"We have got to make sure we don't go overboard. That was a lesson we learned last year. We crammed so much in, we trained for too long. You have got to leave some petrol in the tank."

The All Black side to play Fiji on Friday will be announced today, the only hitout before the Lions test series begins on June 25. It is a slimline schedule but one signed off by the national selectors when they agreed to rest most Crusaders from the All Black trial and that NZ Maori players would have preference for their two matches.

Hansen said there was never an ideal way to get sorted for a test series but the panel felt the variety of games offered them high-level comparisons of players.

"Most of the Maori players have been in the All Blacks before or systems we have coached them in before, so we are not too bothered by that," he said.

"Any coach will tell you they do not have enough preparation time, so you've just got to accept what you've got and get on with it. We have to make the most of it and use every minute of it."

The All Blacks yesterday had time to acknowledge the powerful presence of the Lions against the Bay of Plenty and spoke of their compassion for Lawrence Dallaglio, leaving the tour injured.

"I think it's really sad," Hansen said.

"It's robbed the tour of a personality, it's robbed the tour of a great player. Although he's in the opposition I really feel for the bloke."

The All Blacks were convinced Dallaglio would have been the Lions No 8 for the test series.

All Black halfback Justin Marshall, who is made a member of the NZ Order of Merit today, was equally magnanimous even though he and Dallaglio had some nasty exchanges on the field.

Marshall, like Dallaglio, intended making this series his international swansong before taking up a contract with Leeds. "When I saw it [the injury] ... I actually felt like sending the guy a text message and saying 'Look, I really feel for what's happened for you', because it probably meant everything to him, this trip."

When Marshall received the recent letter from the Government, he worried it could be about tax or some other misdemeanour.

"But I am absolutely blown away, really excited and really honoured by this [the royal honour]," he said.

Whether Marshall is picked today ahead of Byron Kelleher is just one of the intrigues about the All Black test side.

Do the selectors choose their top lineup or keep some out of sight of the Lions? Can they afford to ignore this chance for all their frontline test men? Will Mils Muliaina finally get a run at centre?