All Blacks no longer arrogant

Editor

New Zealand head coach Steve Hansen has said that his side will arrive in England with no arrogance after learning from past mistakes.

The defending champions are set to travel to London on Thursday to begin their final preparations before their tournament opener against Argentina on September 20.

Looking back on the experience of 2007 when New Zealand were knocked out in the quarter-finals by France, Hansen said the side then were "too comfortable".

No similar mistakes are likely to be made eight years later as the All Blacks look to try and win the World Cup away from New Zealand for the first time.

"In 2007, I think we rocked up a little arrogant, like previous All Blacks teams over the years may have," said Hansen.

"We were too comfortable, having come off being the number one team for a long time and just expected it to happen.

"Rugby, or any sport, will tell you that if you rock up to a contest involving another person and expect it to happen then the other guy or athletes will have something to say about that.

"There is not an expectation that we should win it by right. We're not going to defend the World Cup because it's not ours to defend. It has already gone back."