Haden warns New Zealand of England threat

Press, 27 May 1985, Page 21

Haden warns New Zealand of England threat

NZPA staff correspondent Auckland Inspired by its captain, the discarded All Black lock, Andy Haden, Auckland crushed England 24-6 at Eden Park on Saturday.

Though England lost by 18 points, by three converted tries to one, it emerged from this match, a week before its first test against New Zealand, more enlightened than dispirited. This was a learning experience for England — its first head-on confrontation with New Zealand rugby played ruthlessly well.

The tourists were well beaten, never seemed like winning, but at least revealed some ability, ballwinning potential and a strong, almost obsessive defence. Auckland, at the same time, was substantially below its best but still the most committed, organised, thinking provincial team in New Zealand. Its performance made England brutally aware of the level it will need to reach to succeed in New Zealand.

The home side exposed deficiencies in England’s game and England displayed its own tactical limitations. There were compensations, however. England was not embarrassed by its share of possession, only by its inability to control that possession and its reluctance to use it expansively. Haden found England had the best ball-winning forward pack he has played against in recent seasons and called its line-out play the best he has encountered on Eden Park.

He hailed England's aggression and its defence and he promised an All Black team, which will lack his services, stern competition from the tourists at Lancaster Park next Saturday.

Haden was so much at the forefront of Auckland’s

performance on Saturday, that he was perfectly qualified to assess England’s strengths. Shrugging off the effects of injury, he was tactician and leader by example, a ball-winner, a thundering, enterprising, inspiring forward.

The national selectors watched from the stands as the man they did not want in their first test side because of a lack of match play after 39 tests and 113 matches for New Zealand, showed himself at his peak. Haden gave Auckland its first try after a 25-minute scoring drought, a “here’s mud in your eye” gesture to the selectors who have scorned his ability and experience. The applause for Haden as he rose with the ball amid the thicket of England defenders through which he had crashed was long and heart-felt. Eden Park had its hero. He was everything the 35,000 crowd wanted and expected him to be.

He was wiser for his outing, impressed with England’s resilience, disappointed that Auckland had not played to its full potential but still smiling, taking a special pleasure in showing his own form. “It is a poor assumption that Auckland’s performance should have been better,” he said. “That was an England international side and, give them credit, the reason we made the mistakes is that they had pressure on us. When you have the pressure on and there is good tackling, and it was damned good tackling from the English backs, the mistakes come.

“I thought they were the most aggressive forward

pack that we have struck,” Haden said. “They are the best ball-winning pack at line-out time I’ve played against at Eden Park.” Haden praised Wade Dooley as an English lock who commits himself to the hunt for line-out ball more physically than other British locks of recent years. Steve Bainbridge, who had the task of marking Haden but who varied his position in England’s lineout effectively, had not lost anything as a player “in spite of the injustices he has suffered,” Haden said.

The Auckland captain noted the spoiling tactics of both teams at line-outs which limited the effectiveness of that area of possession as a foundation for other play. Line-out ball was evenly shared if not tidy, however.

While Auckland was committed to a policy of open play, almost to its own cost, England laboured under a heavy tactical restraint. It won possession but chanced the ball in its backs for the first time in the fiftieth minute. Its only try, to the wing three-quarters, Simon Smith, followed five minutes later.

England stopped short of admitting after the match that it had had no intention of running ball from set play and complained that its second phase ball was not sufficiently controlled to act as a platform for attacking rugby.

Auckland, which did chance its arm, did not advertise the running game well because of its excess of unforced errors but there were moments of magic, none less than John Kirwan’s blistering run

which led to Gary Whetton’s try. Kirwan, given the ball from a set scrum, crashed through three defenders and stepped round his marker before David Kirk and Glen Rich carried the move on in restricted space and allowed Whetton to score. Auckland’s three tries came from set pieces, showing England that it was possible to create chances from a first phase platform. Haden scored the first, Whetton the second and Joe Stanley capped the scoring when he bullocked over from a scrum under England's posts. Grant Fox, who missed three early attempts at goal, retrieved his reputation by converting each try and adding two penalties, five successes in a row. England’s principal fault was its inability to control its own possession. Winning first phase from a good lineout and a scrum that was slightly pressured suggested England could create more opportunities. But there was a lack of cohesion in England’s second phase play,

problems, which Haden summarised as poor body positioning, which saw the ball go astray too often from the breakdown. “We were looking for good second phase ball to attack from but we did not really get it,” said the England captain, Paul Dodge. “We did not get enough so that a good pattern could be established. When we did move the ball on we looked quite dangerous and it is something we will have to work on.” The Auckland coach, John Hart observed, “I was a little disappointed that they were not more expansive at times. “When I say that I mean they got some good ball with an opportunity to run it. I think their backs individually are good and I would not underestimate them,"said Mr Hart. Scorers: Auckland 24 (Andy Haden, Gary Whetton, Joe Stanley tries; Grant Fox, three conversions, two penalties). England 6 (Simon Smith a try; Stuart Barnes a conversion). Half-time: Auckland 12-0.