Coach Ian Foster with All Blacks players after their loss to the Springboks. Photo / Photosport
Coach Ian Foster with All Blacks players after their loss to the Springboks. Photo / Photosport
By Liam Napier in South Africa
As the unwanted records mount, All Blacks coach Ian Foster maintains something special is brewing with his spiralling team.
Defeat at Mbombela Stadium, their fifth loss from the last six tests, consigned the All Blacks to their worst start to a season in 52years. You have to go back to 1970 to find the last time the All Blacks lost three of their first four tests.
Foster's win record as head coach now stands at 60 per cent – 15 wins, nine losses, one draw – after the All Blacks slumped to their worst defeat in 94 years in South Africa, second only to the 17-0 defeat in Durban in 1928.
While World Rugby's rankings are volatile and often wildly skewed, the All Blacks have slipped to fifth for the first time, too.
Throw in the maiden loss to Argentina last year and the first successive defeats on New Zealand soil since 1998 last month, and this chequered record is why Foster must inspire the All Blacks to victory at the mecca of South African rugby this week to save his job.
"It's a huge week. We always knew coming over here for back-to-back tests was going to be massive," Foster said as the All Blacks departed Mbombela's lowveld for Johannesburg's altitude. "It would've been nice to win the first one but we didn't so we go to Ellis Park where it's all on the line. It's a trophy that's pretty special to us.
"We've got to have a deep breath. We know there's a lot of pressure on. We are feeling that but we've also got our own pressure on ourselves. Our job is to look at our performance and how we can grow it. I understand the frustration but it doesn't change what we have to do here and now. There's no point sulking about it for too long. We've got to get into Ellis Park and keep believing. I still think there's something special brewing but we've got to keep showing that."
Coach Ian Foster with All Blacks players after their loss to the Springboks. Photo / Photosport
Despite the stats revealing the depths of their decline, and amid the ongoing frustrations with the All Blacks attack, breakdown work and inability to deal with the Springboks' aerial bombardment, Foster reiterated comments following the latest 26-10 loss in which he suggested it was his side's best and most improved performance of the year.
One day after that defeat Foster further explained that he was hearted by the improvements in the All Blacks defence in the outside channels and in close where he felt they negated the Springboks big ball carries. He also referenced the lineout and vastly improved maul defence thanks to Jason Ryan's introduction as forwards coach.
"Also our movements off the ball we had a lot more certainty about what we were doing," Foster said. "I felt those areas were ones we targeted and we did get a big movement. It wasn't good enough. For all that good stuff, we're still a team that's trying to find its feet, trying to get out of these three defeats.
"We're trying a little bit too hard and making errors in big moments. That's the part we've got to sort out very quickly."
Foster confirmed he would inject fresh bodies - likely in the form of Ethan de Groot, Richie Mo'unga and Sevu Reece among others – in an attempt to spark a response, while conceding the vicious cycle that is repeat defeats and pressure has formed an inescapable burden for the All Blacks to bear.
"There's no doubt about that. I'm incredibly proud of the effort they're putting in. Believe it or not there's a lot of belief in the squad and we feel we are taking steps but we have to prove that."
All Blacks players dejected after losing to the Springboks. Photo / Photosport
Combating the Springboks' crippling rush defence is yet another issue the All Blacks will attempt to tackle. Foster claimed the All Blacks improved in this area against Ireland, only for their skills to fail them on multiple occasions in the face of shooting Boks defenders.
"They're different beasts. If you look at some of the moments they won defensively there were opportunities around that. That's the stuff we're slowly getting used to. Playing South Africa you're always going to have big pressure points with the way they defend.
"No we didn't get it right on Saturday but there was certainly enough there for us to be interested.
"It's the last pass when you've actually got them but they're throwing everything at that last situation to try and deal with it late. If you exercise that skill set then you've got a lot of space in front. If you don't, then you're in trouble."
That trouble is fast becoming a familiar foe for Foster's All Blacks.
