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Firing All Blacks attack eyes opportunities to exploit against Springboks
Sport Nation • August 17th, 2026 9:36 am
Josh Moorby | Photo: Photosport
The All Blacks believe they have identified opportunities to exploit South Africa, as they turn their attention towards the opening Test of the series this weekend.
The NZ attack has been firing since they landed in the Republic, scoring 142 points across their three matches on tour against the Stormers (38-21), Sharks (54-0), and most recently the Bulls (50-19) on Sunday morning (NZ time).
New assistant coach Mike Blair - who's primarily tasked with the offense - may well be feeling satisfied with the team's progress under his watch, but admits there was still plenty of room for improvement, as the Springboks await them in Johannesburg.
“We've definitely left points out there,” Blair said.
"With the Stormers at the start of the game, I felt if we'd scored a couple of kind of gilt-edged opportunities, we could have put them away. But then we let them back into it and they played some good rugby.
"Sharks, we had really difficult conditions, so I'm really pleased that we were able to get some good multi-phase in there as well.
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"Bulls was a lot of good stuff, but a little bit of a mixed bag in terms of finishing. So, I think we're building."
Limited preparation time has impacted some of the fluidity, says Blair. But all things considered, he's confident the side are building well heading to Ellis Park.
"It's difficult sometimes to get cohesion with the group, especially the group that played the Stormers game and the Bulls game. We didn't have a huge amount of training time going into this game either.
"Understandable reasons for why we're not really slick, but there's been some excellent stuff there as well."
That accuracy will be particularly important against South Africa, with Blair expecting the All Blacks to have fewer attacking windows against the hosts' well-drilled world champion defence.
The All Blacks beat Stormers 38-21 to open their South Africa tour but were far from their best | Photo: AP
“We're aware against South Africa we're going to get less opportunities,” he said. “So when we do get them, we've gotta be right on with our skill set and decision making.”
Despite the challenge of managing two different teams across a short period, limiting preparation time ahead of the Test series, Blair said the squad had responded positively.
“It's been a busy period. I think that the players have been excellent throughout. Lots of enthusiasm, lots of energy, and we're just looking forward to getting to the Test series now.”
And while he stopped short of revealing the All Blacks' tactical blueprint, Blair said belief in their plan will be crucial.
“I think it's really important to believe that you do,” he said when asked if the All Blacks have a game plan to beat the Springboks.
“We know what South Africa can bring. They've got some real strengths in amongst their DNA, but we see some opportunities as well.”
