New Zealand head coach Ian Foster insisted that his side is unfazed by the recent defeat to South Africa in the recently concluded Rugby World Cup warm-up game at Twickenham Stadium.
Tries from Siya Kolisi, Malcolm Marx, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Mbongeni Mbonambi and Kwagga Smith helped the Boks claim a convincing 35-7 victory as they head into the Rugby World Cup with momentum but the defeat saw the All Blacks slip down to the fourth place in the World Rugby Rankings.
Despite the setback, Foster said the team is upbeat about their chances in the upcoming campaign.
“We’re confident. It didn’t look like that, and I know we got a good spanking, so I’m not hiding from that fact. We’re not panicking about that result,” Foster told the All Blacks website.
“We knew we were going to get challenged. It’s not the result we wanted. I still believe in the plan.
“I still believe the group that needed to play played. Scott, not as long as I would’ve liked.”
The All Blacks will kick-start their campaign with a clash against France on 9th September and Foster is expecting another stiff challenge against the hosts.
“We’ve now got a good litmus test of where we’re at. Everyone is in the same boat after this weekend,” he added.
“We’ve got to use our camp in Germany really smart and go into France and get stuck into what’s going to be an exciting World Cup.
“There was a lot of emotion in the sheds afterwards, but we’ve just got to calm down and say, ‘that’s World Cups’. If you’re looking for a dress rehearsal that’s perfect.”