I was travelling down from Kithulgala last Saturday evening, and could barely believe my eyes when I saw the final score line. More than the fact that the All Blacks racked up 57- points, I was more startled at the fact that South Africa were not even able to get off the mark. In the modern-day game, that is indeed a rarity. So, I had to be content with watching the repeat the following morning to see how exactly things unfolded in Albany.

It is a bit of a downer when you watch a game, while knowing the outcome. It’s in stark contrast to the buzz and adrenaline rush that you have when you watch it live. It’s incomparable in that sense. But from an analytical point of view, it’s actually more beneficial. You’re not besotted emotionally, and can cast a more analytical eye on proceedings.

In many respects, it was a strange game. Over the first fifteen minutes I thought the Springboks played very well actually. They exerted pressure on the All Blacks scrum and managed to string quite a few phases of attack. But pressure counts for nothing if a team is not able to convert that into points. Most international team will make you pay, and the All Blacks will make you pay dearly – which turned out to be the case.

Elton Janjies
France’s wing Virimi Vakatawa is tackled by South Africa’s fly half Elton Janjies during the first rugby union Test match between South Africa and France at the Loftus Versfeld Arena in Pretoria on June 10, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / MARCO LONGARI

Going back to that first fifteen minutes, an All Blacks infringement presented the Boks with a very kick-able penalty. Unfortunately, Elton Janjies just couldn’t guide it through the uprights. This was very costly in my estimation. It’s no secret that I’m not a fan of Janjies.

I just don’t think he’s good enough at test match level. And last Saturday’s performance did very little to prove me wrong. The more pressure he’s under, the deeper he sits, which makes it so much easier for the defense to come up and snuff out any attacking threat of the backline. Francois Hougard didn’t really help him either, as he took an eternity to feed him off set play as well as the breakdown. In contrast, Aaron Smith was back to his absolute best. When on song, his speed of service is the best in the world by a country mile. I’m glad that he finally seems to have shaken off his personal woes.

Raymond Rhule
South Africa’s Raymond Rhule pases the ball during the Rugby Championship match between New Zealand and South Africa at Albany Stadium in Auckland on September 16, 2017 / ©AFP

In many respects, South Africa were their worst own enemies by way of tackles missed, and more inexplicably by failing to win their own line-outs. The All Blacks stole five of their throw-ins, with many more failing to hit their marker. And in defense, particularly out-wide, they were appalling. Raymond Rhule was the chief culprit, missing as many as six tackles. Simply not good enough at this level.

The All Blacks didn’t need a second invitation and piled on as many as eight tries. Two of them were absolute peaches. The first was when Aaron Smith took a quick tap, and put in a kick behind the defense for rookie sensation Reiko Ioane to collect and score.

The second was a jaw-dropper when Beauden Barrett bamboozled the Bok backline, and just when you thought he’ll try to go all the way he executed a mind boggling reverse pass to the supporting Nehe Milner-Skudder.

Beauden Barrett
New Zealand’s Beauden Barrett scores a try during the Rugby Championship match between the New Zealand All Blacks and Argentina in New Plymouth on September 9, 2017.
/ AFP PHOTO / Marty MELVILLE

Simply marvelous. First time around I couldn’t quite figure out how that happened. You could watch that replay time and time again, and never stop marveling at the skill Barrett possesses. What a change a week can bring. There were quite a few question marks over Barrett’s performance against Argentina, particularly his goal kicking. But this time around, everything he touched turned to gold. It was that kind of night.

Alister Coetzee and the Springbok management have a lot to think about before their final two home games. What is blatantly obvious is that the South African team is not selected based on merit alone. If you don’t have your best available fifteen on the park, you’re simply setting yourself up for failure. They can well learn a thing or two from the Kiwis.

That brings me to a, since of late, well researched question – What makes the All Blacks so great?

Since 1905 the All Blacks have a win percentage of over 77%. If you look at a more recent analysis, between 2010 and 2106, New Zealand played 90 tests winning 82 of them. This equates to a staggering success rate of 92.13! They have been ranked no. 1 for twice the duration as the rest of the world combined. And are the only nation to win three World Cups – twice in a row (2011,2015). It’s no surprise why they are rated as the most successful sporting team in the world.

What makes them so good?

There was an interesting story during the Lions tour of New Zealand in 1993. After winning the first test, the touring Lions beat the All Blacks 20-7 in Wellington.  After the game, All Blacks captain Sean Fitspatrick is said to have kept his entire team back in the dressing room with the doors closed. He wanted his teammates to absorb what “defeat feels like”, as it obviously didn’t happen too often. The following week, they blitzed the Lions 30-13 at Christchurch to clinch the series.

Gilbert Enoka
CHICAGO, IL – NOVEMBER 01: All Black captain Kieran Read (C) shares a laugh with coach Steve Hansen (L) and assistant manager Gilbert Enoka (R) ©AFP

However, a key element of the All Blacks success is that they are progressive in their outlook. Fear of failure is now an archaic sports science. Gilbert Enoka, is their mental skills, and in the words of Steve Hansen, he is the ‘glue’ that holds the All Blacks together. Following several unsuccessful World Cup campaigns (1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007), the All Blacks got themselves a reputation of being branded chokers on the biggest stage.

However, Enoka successfully created a culture where rather than being engulfed by the pressure, the players ‘walked towards it’, and ’embraced’ it as an opportunity.

In fact, the physiological elements make up a big part of the All Blacks success story. The blue head, read head theory is central to the All Blacks psyche. Simply put, when you are fully engaged and thinking clearly, you make the best decisions – blue head thinking. But when you are anxious, frustrated, angry, or even distracted, you are thinking with a red head. Based on this theory, when you enter a period of red head thinking, you need to find an anchor to pull yourself back into blue head mode. What is vital is that these anchors are immediately accessible, though they vary player to player. For example, Richie McCaw would stamp his feet, while current Skipper Kieran Read would stare at the farthest point of the stadium.

The All Blacks are unique in the fact that there has been transferring of power from the coaches to the leadership group of the team. So, when there is a case where someone transgressors, that member is answerable to his teammates, rather than the coaches. As a group, they uphold the mantra of

“Better people make better All Blacks”. The emphasis is on developing character and leadership so as to enable them to make better decisions on the field.

In line with this, there is a rigidly enforced ‘no egos’ policy within the squad. ‘No egos’ is a nice way to put it. The actual term cannot be published.  It was originally coined by Aussie rules team Sydney Swans. No player is bigger than the jersey. They consider themselves as custodians who are entrusted to nourish it and leave it in a better place, for the next generation. You are part of a wider legacy, and this is ‘you time, your moment’. It’s also interesting to note that every single player, senior or junior, takes turns in sweeping out the dressing room.

As for the talent pool and performance, the back bone of the All Blacks has been the fact that they always have five very strong super rugby teams propped up by a very competitive provincial structure. Knowledge is also imparted from the very top, all the way down to the grass roots. For example, there are clear lines of communication between the All Blacks coaches, and those that work with their respective super rugby teams. The players also play with and against each other frequently, so that interchange of knowledge happens through and through. So strong is their player base now, that if New Zealand is allowed to enter two teams at an international competition you wouldn’t bet against both making it to the finals.

The policy of being eligible for selection only if you play in New Zealand, has helped to secure their best players. This in turn has kept the talent pool strong and competitive.

Other nations that have allowed players to go oversees for lucrative contracts and still be eligible for selection have paid the price.

Success breeds success they say. And this certainly has been the case for the All Blacks. It is now the dream of every toddler kicking a can around from Cape Reinga to Slope Point to be an All Black one day. It is this dream that burns in their hearts through their junior days and academy years, right until they hit the professional stage. It looks to be quite a while before we see the All Blacks fall off their perch.

Only time will tell.