RUGBY. A week after its failed entry into contention against France, New Zealand must revive and show authority against modest Namibia. Follow the live commentary of the match from 9 p.m., on Linternaute.com.
Get up, get back up and do it now. New Zealand had never experienced such a situation in a World Cup. Lose in the group stage, and worse, do it as soon as you enter the fray. An uncomfortable situation from which the triple world champions want to extricate themselves as quickly as possible.
And after falling against France, the host country and among the favorites for the world title, the All Blacks are offered against modest Namibia, a perfect opportunity to reassure themselves, to put their rugby in place and to express their qualities so rarely seen at the Stade de France. “It’s a key match to get us back on track,” said Ian Foster on the sidelines of the announcement of his starting XV. To do this, the New Zealand coach has opted for a hybrid formula, between preservation of executives, like Sam Cane and Jordie Barrett with whom no risks will be taken, and new associations to mobilize the rest of his squad, making 9 changes.
Thus, the hinge has been completely redesigned and will be composed by the duo Cam Roigard at the scrum Damian McKenzie at the opening. Two players who are new to the competition and will have a shot at shaking up the hierarchy. The 42-cap opener is eager to get going, having missed the previous edition due to an Achilles tendon injury. “If there are spaces, we will take them. We have wingers with lethal qualities, so we will have to use them. We must return to our fundamentals, our instinct,” he promised. It’s up to him to manage to organize his attack as best as possible and to give Havili, Lienert-Brown and especially Clarke and Fainga’Anuku the opportunity to express themselves in a less competitive context.
Up front, the Blacks will also be keen to offer better density and make fewer errors. Also, the return of the experienced Rettalick-Whitelock duo should do good, on the occasion of their 66th association and the second’s 148th cap, making them the equal of former New Zealand captain Richie McCaw. “It’s the opportunity to bounce back,” said Ardie Savea, who however asked his team to be wary of the physical dimension of the Namibians.
Because if no one sees Namibia and its 23 defeats in as many matches played in the competition, creating the feat, it will present itself as an expiating victim. No, the Welwitschias oscillate between admiration and envy. “Playing against quality players like the New Zealand team, it’s an incredible opportunity for us to not only measure ourselves (against them), but also to learn from them and see how the best teams do it. things on the pitch,” enthuses captain Johan Deysel. “We knew we were in a group with high-quality international teams, it’s not something that scares us but it’s something that really excites us,” adds South African coach Allister Coetzee.
Learning is one thing, but van Jaarsveld and his partners will still have to do it without taking a suitcase. For their first match, they lasted around 40 minutes against Italy before losing their footing after returning from the locker room and completely sinking at the end of the match. Defensive problems which will not be forgiving against the New Zealand strike force. A force that the Namibians know well having paid the price in 2015 and 2019 with two heavy defeats, 129 points and 18 tries conceded, for 23 points and only 1 try scored.
“New Zealand are one of the best teams in the world. Our plan is to stop their momentum and break their rhythm”, hopes Allister Coetzee who knows however that “New Zealand takes this match seriously.” This is the problem for the Namibians who risk being hit hard by the awakening of the New Zealand giant.
The match counting for the 2nd day between the All Blacks, nickname of the New Zealanders, and the Welwitschias (African fishing eagle and emblem of the Namibian team) will take place from 9 p.m., near the Stadium in Toulouse.
The World Cup match between New Zealand and the Namibian team will be broadcast live unencrypted on TF1.
The World Cup match between Ian Foster’s New Zealand and Allister Coetzee’s Namibia will be available for streaming on the MyTF1 platform.
BetClic: New Zealand: – / Draw: 50 / Namibia: 30
Parions Sport: New Zealand: 1.18 / Draw: 15 / France: 3.50
Winamax: New Zealand: – / Draw: 70 / France: 30
Nouvelle-Zélande : 1. Tuungafasi, 2. Taukei’aho, 3. Laulala – 4. Retallick, 5. Whitelock – 6. Jacobson, 7. Papali’i, 8. Savea (cap.) – 9. Roigard, 10. McKenzie – 11. Fainga’Anuku, 12. Havili, 13. Lienert-Brown, 14. Clarke – 15. Barrett.
Namibia: 1. Benade, 2. Van Jaarsveld, 3. Coetzee – 4. Retief, 5. Uanivi – 6. Conradie, 7. Gaoseb, 8. Hardwick – 9. Stevens, 10. Swanpoel – 11. Rossouw, 12. Malan , 13. Deysel (cap.), 14. Mouton – 15. Loubser.
