All Blacks Demand Breakdown Consistency Ahead of Final Springboks Test in Baltimore
- All Blacks attack coach Mike Blair raised officiating concerns at the breakdown ahead of Saturday's final Test against South Africa in Baltimore
- Blair said New Zealand's attack depends on clean, fast ball and called for penalties rather than repeated warnings for illegal actions
- South Africa lead the Greatest Rivalry series 2-1 and could seal a 3-1 victory with a win in Baltimore
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New Zealand's attack coach Mike Blair has called for stricter officiating at the breakdown ahead of Saturday's fourth and final Test against South Africa in Baltimore, urging referees to penalise illegal actions rather than managing offenders with repeated warnings.
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Blair made the remarks as the All Blacks prepare to face the Springboks in a series decider, with South Africa holding a 2-1 lead in the Greatest Rivalry tour. A Springbok win would seal a 3-1 series victory, while New Zealand must win to level the contest at 2-2.
Blair pushes for referee consistency
The breakdown has been a central battleground throughout the series, and Blair identified it as a key area where New Zealand need greater clarity from officials.
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"Our attack is based on our ability to move the ball and move the opposition around, so the cleaner our breakdown, the better for us," Blair said.
"I think if you are doing something illegal, you should be penalised for it."
He acknowledged the challenge facing referees but insisted that consistency is the minimum the All Blacks expect.
"I feel for the referees because it's a really difficult game that they are refereeing," Blair said.
"I think you could go through a Test match, and you can pick out 20 or 30 times where you could've made a different decision. We respect the fact that it's a really difficult job for the referees at the moment, but what we ask for is consistency within that."
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Gain line progress, ruck speed a concern
Blair acknowledged improvement across the series but said the Springboks managed to disrupt New Zealand's tempo during last weekend's 29-24 defeat at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg.
"There's a balance with the gain line and ruck speed," he said.
"You don't want one without the other. We have improved our gain line through the three Tests, which has been excellent. South Africa have a very strong defence and are very collision-based, but they were able to slow a little bit of our ball down."
Blair also flagged the possibility that South Africa, now leading the series, could alter their tactical approach in Baltimore. Saturday's Test in Baltimore will bring the four-match Greatest Rivalry series to a close.
The All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie has repeatedly complained about the Springboks' tactics. After the second Test in Cape Town, he claimed South Africa were able to “walk around” at scrum time and go straight through the All Blacks' tighthead.
Erasmus was furious with the accusation. The Springbok coach said the claim was being pushed into the media and rejected the suggestion that his forwards were illegally moving around at scrum time.
“We scrum straight,” Erasmus said, while pointing out that New Zealand's first six scrums had collapsed and been reset.
The row subsequently became part of a wider debate about whether the All Blacks were trying to deflect attention from their own problems by focusing on South Africa's scrum.
Former Springbok coach Nick Mallett also weighed into the dispute, accusing New Zealand of “basically cheating” by deliberately collapsing scrums to create a 50/50 decision for the referee.
All Blacks star hails Springboks' Ox Nche
Briefly News previously reported that injured All Blacks loosehead prop Tamaiti Williams praised Springboks counterpart Ox Nche ahead of the fourth and final Test in Baltimore
Williams, sidelined with a spinal infection, spoke in detail about what separates Nche from every other prop in world rugby
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Source: Briefly News
