Forwards grasp scrum, lineout lessons

DURBAN - Lock Chris Jack says the All Black forwards have learned from the set-piece lessons delivered last month by England and France.

Arguably the stand-out performer in the New Zealand tight five through the three tests last month, Jack said the loss to England and the patchy win over France highlighted the importance of the scrum and lineout, areas which were inconsistent.

"This year we've only played Northern Hemisphere teams and that [set-piece work] is an important thing to them," Jack said.

"In a couple of games we were found a bit wanting in some phases, so we've put a bit more importance on that. But hopefully we can still play a brand of rugby we enjoy."

While the Springboks might not have the technical skills at scrum and lineout, clashes with their forwards still provided an enormous physical challenge, Jack said.

He believed the All Blacks would be ready for that challenge tomorrow.

"It's always really physical and nothing really changes. They've obviously proven themselves, they played really well against the Australians and, hopefully, we can foot it with them," he said.

"By the sounds of things, South Africa played very well and deserved the win."

Jack disagreed with a suggestion that the team felt more comfortable being away from criticism by media and the public in New Zealand.

He said it was a disadvantage playing in front of a foreign crowd, while the same off-field distractions remained.

"Wherever we go there's media and they've got their opinions on things, it's fair to say," he said, adding that the swipes taken at players such as captain Reuben Thorne were unjustified.

"We try to keep our eyes away from that sort of thing. But obviously it hurts to see one of your friends being criticised. We know what they do on the field and how good they are.

"We're behind each other 100 per cent, no matter what happens."

- NZPA