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‘A lot to play for’: All Blacks refuse to fold as Rennie targets strong finish
Sport Nation • September 8th, 2026 11:40 am
Dave Rennie | Photo: Photosport
Dave Rennie admits there is “massive emotional disappointment” in the All Blacks camp after South Africa wrapped up the series, but says the side still has plenty to play for in the fourth Test.
The All Blacks arrived in the United States after a long journey and were given the day off to recover, with Rennie acknowledging the physical and emotional toll of the tour.
But with one Test remaining, the focus has quickly shifted towards finishing the series strongly.
“If we can win this weekend and tie the series two-all, we’ll go home knowing we’re in a better spot than when we arrived,” Rennie said.
Rennie believes the All Blacks have made progress during the tour, with the squad spending more time together, using a wider group of players and building a clearer understanding of the game they want to play.
The challenge now is turning promising passages into a complete 80-minute performance.
“It’s such small margins,” Rennie said.
The All Blacks created opportunities in the third Test but were unable to sustain enough pressure, allowing the Springboks to take control when the game tightened up.
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“We couldn’t control the game or stick positive moments together for a 10 or 15-minute period in the second half, and they hurt us,” Rennie said.
South Africa’s ability to punish mistakes has been a defining feature of the series, but Rennie is not asking his side to abandon its attacking approach.
“We’re not going to be flawless,” he said.
“Because of the type of game we’re trying to play, we’re not going to get it right every time from a decision-making point of view. But if we can create enough of those opportunities and take a big chunk of them, then that should be good enough to win games.”
The All Blacks also face another stern examination at scrum and maul time, with Rennie identifying both areas as key Springbok weapons.
“They’ve got a great scrum, a great maul, so our ability to stay in front of that maul is important,” he said.
“When we did that, we limited their ability to hurt us.”
Rather than trying to completely remove South Africa’s strengths, Rennie wants the All Blacks to limit the number of chances they give them to use them.
“If we’re more accurate, there’s less scrums and greater continuity for us,” he said.
“If we don’t kick the ball out, there’s less lineouts for them.”
“You can’t just make their strengths disappear, but our job is to limit the amount of opportunities they get.”
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