Scott Robertson pinpoints the All Blacks’ weakness causing their final quarter points drought
Referee Karl Dickson issues a yellow card to All Blacks centre Anton Lienert-Brown and insert of head coach Scott Robertson.
All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson has addressed his team’s struggles during the final stages of matches in this year’s Rugby Championship and how they intend to fix it.
After winning the last four Rugby Championships from 2020 to 2023, New Zealand have found the going tough in this year’s competition as they have won two just out of five Tests played so far.
A huge contributing factor to their poor form is the fact that they have not scored any points during the final quarter of each of their Rugby Championship Tests in 2024.
Poor discipline proving costly
The All Blacks‘ discipline has also let them down badly as they have conceded a plethora of penalties while six of their players have also been yellow carded at various stages of the competition.
Speaking after the team announcement for the All Blacks’ Bledisloe Cup rematch with the Wallabies in Wellington on Saturday, Robertson was asked about the correlation between the amount of yellow cards his team have received and the lack of scoring at the back end of matches and gave an emphatic response.
“Obviously they are linked,” he said. “When you get a yellow card you’re going to give six points away on average.
“We were warned there was a little offside there and then you’ve got a tap ball in the air and the guy’s owned it. It’s something that’s a little bit of individual and also as a group.
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“We’ve got to be better than that and that’s what we’re focused on.”
Five of those yellow cards came during New Zealand’s last three Tests with four of those – to Ofa Tu’ungafasi, Tyrel Lomax, Anton Lienert-Brown and Caleb Clarke – occurring during the latter stages of matches – against the Springboks, in Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the Wallabies in Sydney.
Another major talking point ahead of Saturday’s clash with the Wallabies is the All Blacks’ poor record in Wellington, with Sky Stadium currently the men in black’s worst venue in New Zealand based on results.
For New Zealand, it has been six long years since their last win at Sky Stadium, a 26-13 triumph against France in 2018. Since then, the All Blacks have suffered three defeats – against Argentina, South Africa and Ireland – and recorded two draws – against the Springboks and Wallabies.
Keen to end winless run in Wellington
Robertson said his charges are fully aware of their woeful form in Wellington and are determined to return to winning ways there in what is their last home Test of 2024.
“It’s really important,” he added. “It’s something we’ve addressed, something we’re really well aware of, like the rest of the New Zealand public.
“It’s a record that we’re not proud of and the way you deal with records is by performances, so that’s been our main focus this week. Good performance and something the crowd can be proud of as New Zealanders.”
