Forget any thoughts of this being a “warm-up” or a “friendly”. When the All Blacks face Springboks, those words are not in the vocabulary according to veteran All Black Ardie Savea.
The iconic loose forward, who is key to his side’s hopes at the Rugby World Cup, sent out a warning to the Boks that the All Blacks want to go out there “firing and banging”.
"It's not part of our vocabulary at the moment. We want to go out there firing and banging,” he said after the side’s practice session.
"For me, every test is hard, and that's just internal - a gut feel I put upon myself, and the standard in every game is hard and tough and you want to get prepared for that and playing this game against South Africa leading up to what is next is important."
And he was wary that the Springboks would be looking to do the same - especially after smarting from a poor opening 20 minutes in Auckland in the Rugby Championship and wanting to prove something ahead of their World Cup campaign.
“They’re big men and they’re physical,”he added.
“They’ll be looking at that last test and that first 20 and will want to come out firing and nullify us. The way we started against Aussie in Dunedin, if we give that to South Africa it will be a long day at the office. They pose a massive threat around their physicality at the breakdown
"They pose a massive threat around their physicality, their threats around the breakdown, so we've got to nail our structures, our game plan and be ready for things that go our way."
Savea also said he was being fuelled by the disappointment of the 2019 Rugby World Cup and his role in the team was guided by the hunger to right those wrongs from Japan.
"I guess it's different, personally for me," said Savea. "Being younger, you come in, try to fill in your role, fill in your job.
"Now, you're a bit more senior, you understand the importance. There are a few guys in this team that it's their last one, it really means a lot.
"I'm not saying 2019 didn't mean a lot, but it just hits differently when you've filled this jersey for a longer period of time.
"You want to do it, rectify the last World Cup, and do a good job this year."
Savea also tipped his hat to Bok captain Siya Kolisi, whose miraculous recovery will see him lead the Boks into the World Cup just more than four months after tearing his ACL.
"He's an inspirational leader, a good friend. To see him come back after his injury at such a fast rate, it's a miracle pretty much. It's awesome that he's there and I know he plays a massive part in their culture and lifting the boys. It's good for Siya."
Friday’s match kicks off at 8.30pm South African time.
){kind=link}
