Sean Fitzpatrick: Herculean task ahead of Henry

It is still early days in the Tri Nations tournament but already it seems clear that Graham Henry has his work cut out.

In the coming weeks he is going to have to really earn his money and it will take all his skill and experience to take us from where we are to where we want, and need, to be.

As the competition unfolds, and after the altitude of Bloemfontein, the test in Durban will be a real reflection of just where the All Blacks are in the global pecking order.

You will already know the result as you read this, but a win would put us back to No 1 in the IRB rankings (the position from which we were pushed last week) while a loss will further underline the Boks' current credentials as the world's best.

Henry was very complimentary about just how good the South Africans were last week and they certainly stepped up from the performances against the British and Irish Lions and played very well. But this All Black team will be targeting the Durban game as one where they can assert their authority, deliver a win, and develop some momentum for the tournament.

Having said that, I am nervous about where the All Black game is heading.

Looking at how we played last week, it is clear we are struggling in certain areas. We are trying to play some rugby, but throwing it about in our own half gives us a lot of work and demands exceptional levels of precision that can't always be achieved against a highly organised and effective unit like South Africa.

Trying to force a game means handling mistakes, losing the ball in the tackle, and getting pinged for too many offences at the breakdown.

Instead of pressurising ourselves, we should be playing territory and percentages. Playing a territory game is difficult if we are struggling at lineout time. We are not where I think we need to be in this facet of the game and it needs quick resolution.

Obviously we need to look at why we are not winning our own ball but we also need to fix this idea of not contesting their throws. I know Henry says it is a "low percentage" strategy and the forwards have to set up to resist rolling mauls but, where I come from, free ball is free ball.

By giving it away, you almost inevitably put yourself under pressure. I'd like to see us taking a bit of their ball - or at least giving it a bloody good go - and rolling a few more mauls in their direction.

I know Steve Hansen is not a fan of the maul but, as we saw last week with the Boks, it can cause opposing teams a lot of problems. So why are we not doing it?

Another worry is that we seem to have developed this knack of giving enormous leads to the other side before finishing strongly. The difference this year is that we're not overhauling them in the later stages; we're falling short and losing games.

I wonder whether some of that might be to do with the calibre of player Henry has to work with. There is general agreement player depth is at an all-time low in New Zealand. Injuries have made the problem worse, but I do keep coming back to the same question - is our domestic game producing the levels of competition and intensity that allows players to be ready and prepared for test level?

I am not really convinced and I suspect that, until and unless this issue is addressed, we are in for more of the same.

I feel for Graham Henry. I rate him as a coach, and you can't blame him for lack of depth or injuries - but he faces a huge challenge. This series of matches against South Africa and Australia will undoubtedly provide a tough, unforgiving environment for him to work within.

He has to keep working out ways to get his players up for the challenge in front of them and believing that they can win matches. Equally importantly, he has to adapt his game plan so that he creates the environment within which they can deliver those results. That gets harder as time goes on.