All Blacks

'It's very fair': Richie Mo'unga responds to All Blacks fans in turmoil

The flyhalf has played off the bench during New Zealand’s disappointing run, with Beauden Barrett preferred in the No.10 shirt for the two losses to Ireland and last week’s 26-10 defeat by world champions South Africa in Nelspruit as they dropped to No.5 in the world rankings.

Coach Ian Foster and his team have been subjected to a bombardment of criticism since losing the July series to the Irish and Mo’unga said he respected the right of fans to vent their frustrations.

“It’s very fair,” Mo’unga told New Zealand media in South Africa.

Springbok wing suspended for four weeks

Arendse was red carded after 75 minutes following a dangerous tackle on All Blacks first five Beauden Barrett that saw the latter land on his neck and remain a doubt for this weekend's second fixture between the sides at Ellis Park.

Arendse pled guilty to the charge, with a SANZAAR release saying the act of foul play was "reckless, highly dangerous and had a considerable impact on the victim player", and will miss the Springboks' next four matches, but will be available for the home clash against Argentina on Sept. 24.

Former All Black questions improvement in the side

The New Zealand side have now lost five of their last six, and will fall to an all-time low of fifth in the world rankings after a lack-lustre 26-10 defeat to South Africa on Sunday morning (NZ time).

Despite the All Blacks again failing to fire, the under pressure head coach called the performance their "best of the season in many ways".

Strachan simply described Foster's comments as "interesting".

"You'd have to argue in the first test against the Irish at Eden Park we saw some good stuff from the All Blacks.

Test rugby: All Blacks strangled, suffocated and bent to Boks' will

The 26-10 loss to the Springboks in Mbolemba was another extension of the gaping wound that is the national side, now festering with pus and infection, stinking to high heaven of defeat and desperation.

All Blacks ready to face Springboks

Rassie Erasmus's Springboks used their bench players to great effect in winning the Rugby World Cup in 2019, bringing on powerful forwards in the second half to grind teams down with physical intensity.

His successor Jacques Nienaber has stuck with the tactic, keeping a 6-2 split of forwards and backs on the bench for the clash at Mbombela Stadium, a few weeks after his team crushed Wales 30-14 with a dominant last quarter in the series decider.

Wing Clarke back for All Blacks but Foster sticks to his guns

Foster is under pressure after the All Blacks lost four of their last five tests, including a historic 2-1 home series defeat by Ireland last month that has left them facing something of a crisis a year out from the Rugby World Cup in France.

They now face back-to-back away Rugby Championship clashes against the world champion Springboks, starting in Nelspruit on Saturday, and although a few players have paid the price for the team's below-par form, the core of the side that lost to the Irish remains in place.

Sam Cane: 'not a lot to fix'

Ireland's historic 2-1 series win in New Zealand last month put head coach Ian Foster under enormous pressure but it was his assistants John Plumtree and Brad Mooar who got the boot and were replaced by forwards coach Jason Ryan.

Any immediate improvement will be tested by world champions South Africa in the opening match of the Rugby Championship that will be played at altitude in Nelspruit on Saturday.

The Fiji reaction to losing assistant Jason Ryan to the All Blacks

The assistant has been working with the Pacific Islanders since 2020 and had been signed until the 2023 Rugby World Cup finals in France. 

However, he will now be at that tournament as an All Blacks assistant after he was recruited last weekend by New Zealand Rugby when they opted to bring in Ryan to assist Ian Foster and jettison John Plumtree and Brad Mooar. 

'None of this is his fault': All Black casualty Pita Gus Sowakula looking outside-in

The Chiefs No 8, renown for his strong ball-carrying, featured off the bench in the first two tests seeing limited action as one of the loose forward reserves.

In the first test he dropped his first pass at test level before recovering to score a try on debut with his next touch, breaking off the back of a five metre scrum to power through Irish flyhalf Joey Carbery.

Ex-All Blacks coach Steve Hansen launches extraordinary attack on New Zealand Rugby

Hansen came out firing in an interview with Today FM's Tova O'Brien after weeks of fierce public criticism of the All Blacks, with coach Ian Foster forced to take all the flak while NZ Rugby stayed silent.

That appears to have been the straw that broke the camel’s back for Hansen, whose criticism will put NZ Rugby under intense pressure to respond.