How to beat the All Blacks: experts lay out strategies

06 November 2016 - 02:00 By The Daily Telegraph

World champions New Zealand are on a record 18-test winning streak and are widely hailed as rugby's best-ever side. As Ireland faced them in Chicago - late South African time - last night, we asked a few experts for their views:Robbie Deans: Coached Australia to three wins and a draw against the All Blacks and took charge of the Barbarians against the Springboks yesterdayTo beat New Zealand, you have to attack them. More than that, you have to choose where and when to attack them.It is not good enough to think "attack, attack, attack".story_article_left1It also needs a full 80-minute performance, which requires a very high level of fitness from the starters and impact from the replacements, because they will stay in there until the death.Rob Webber: Won 16 caps for England since 2012, including four against the All BlacksThe most important thing to do is knock them out of their stride and stop them playing the game at their own pace.An example of that is the line-out: you watch how often in games they take one really quickly and throw it to the back to Kieran Read before the opposition seem set. It is so quick it looks like it is off the cuff, but I can promise you it is not - they execute moves so quickly and efficiently, and then you have to react to them rather than the other way round.There are ways round that, and for that particular example you find yourself working hard to get in position for the lineout to stop them getting that quick ball off the top.It is the same at the breakdown. You have to slow them down. They have a clear ambition for every phase, and for them it is about getting in at the breakdown and away as quickly as possible.Alex Corbisiero: England, Lions prop, started in England's 38-21 win over New Zealand in 2012You have to see past their aura, and to beat them you have to have dominance in at least two or three facets of the game.You need to get as many elements of the game in your favour as possible.Rob Baxter: Exeter Chiefs head coachstory_article_right2First and foremost, you have to put a game plan together or you have to find a way of scoring in excess of 25 points.If that is not your start point, you are probably going to struggle.If your start point is that you are going to defend and concede only 10 or 12 points, you are going to find that pretty hard.Dick Best: Former head coach, beat New Zealand twice with England and the LionsThe key is to beat them up front. When we beat them in 1993 at Twickenham, we picked the biggest pack that England had ever had. Our back-row was Ben Clarke, Tim Rodber and Dean Richards, which in those days was enormous.The game plan was simple: play in their half, not make any mistakes and suck them into a good old English arm wrestle. And we did.We bullied them up front and put them under huge pressure. It had been the same with the Lions when we beat them up front at Wellington...

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