Paris problems scrutinised by All Blacks

Daniel Gilhooly,
AAP
Updated November 12, 2013, 4:26 am


The All Blacks have identified backline deficiencies in the narrow win over France that will need a decent tweak before facing England at Twickenham this weekend.

A review of the 26-19 defeat of France in Paris exposed a number of areas of concern, according to assistant coach Ian Foster, and not a lot of them were up front.

It was a lack of accuracy further out that let them down, something that Foster says would be ruthlessly punished by a strong English side.

"We felt a little bit rusty in some of our execution.

"The frustrating thing is that we set up the platform quite well and we didn't really deliver the knockout blow.

"Some of our final decision-making and a few running lines weren't as polished as they needed to be."

A lack of combinations were evident.

It was first five-eighth Dan Carter's first major Test for two months following a shoulder injury, while wing Cory Jane was playing his first Test for nearly a year.

Ben Smith produced his best performance yet in the unfamiliar centre role, Foster said, although he said his support play needs improvement.

Jane was critical of the All Blacks' failure to counter-attack effectively from French kicks.

"There were opportunities. We just need to work harder as a back three and talk a bit more because that was disappointing," he said.

"We seemed to be individuals back there and if we did kick, our kicks weren't pinpoint."

Jane is the only member of the starting backline from Paris whose selection is under threat - from Hurricanes teammate Julian Savea.

Foster says the medical team will assess how the veteran wing Jane has come through just his third game of rugby this year.

They will also gauge if Savea is 100 per cent ready after spending much of the Paris week off his feet due to an illness.

Foster says the early part of this week is about recovery from the bruising challenge mounted by France on a heavy surface.

He says the acknowledgement they weren't at their best in Paris has already got the New Zealand players on edge this week.

That will only increase, he says, as they start planning for an England team who humbled them by 17 points in the equivalent Test last year.

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