Rugby: Tests blow hot and cold for All Blacks

Dan Carter feels the heat after the match between the All Blacks and Manu Samoa. Photo / Dean Purcell

From the afternoon sunshine in Apia to the sub-zero conditions of a Christchurch mid-winter's evening for the test against the Pumas, the All Blacks are preparing for an extreme change in playing conditions.

The two tests, played nine days apart, are clearly at opposite ends of the spectrum and while coach Steve Hansen joked he would cope by simply putting on a jacket, there is no doubt the challenge will be a unique one.

In fact they are unlikely to have ever experienced such a swing in temperatures between two tests.

Asked if he had faced it with the All Blacks before, Hansen replied: "No, not really - other than maybe at the end of the year [in November] when you leave when it's reasonably warm and you hit the UK and it's not that great.

"The good thing is we're not straight into it. We get home tonight and the boys will get a couple of days to adjust and then Sunday we start training."

The All Blacks played in temperatures of just under 30C at Apia Park on Wednesday. The forecast for next Friday in Christchurch is 1C, but over the next three nights the city is expected to plunge to an overnight low of -5C, which includes severe frosts.

The change will affect players in different ways. Some like playing in the heat and some prefer cooler temperatures, but even some South Island-based players have privately suggested there will be potential discomfort after becoming acclimatised to the tropical heat and humidity of Apia.

After the Apia test the players were weighed to record their fluid loss. Hansen said he wasn't aware of the statistics, but was expecting the losses to be high. He would become concerned only when the players didn't put the weight back on quickly.

"If they say so-and-so has lost so much weight, then in two days' time that's when we'll have a look at it," he said.

"Straight after [the test] isn't really an indicator. They're pretty seasoned athletes and they know what to do."