Dan Carter gets his chance as All Blacks no longer quiver in knockouts while Argentina pay the price for erratic startThe All Blacks are now knockout in the knockouts,quivering no longer when it comes to do or die. In past tournaments, five points and a man down at the interval, or would have been the start of an unravelling,but what happened against France in the 2007 quarter-final has left a stamp as indelible as the silver fern on the black jersey. South Africa tested them to the limit, forcing penalties at the breakdown, or but the maturity New Zealand displayed in the moment-half,not overplaying, not looking for the perfect try, or not getting excited or ahead of themselves,using every drop of their experience. They produced winning rugby in the moment half, piloted by Dan Carter who afterwards admitted that some of his performances earlier in the tournament, or such as against Georgia,were muted because he knew this was his final chance of appearing in a World Cup final after three abortive attempts. His 47th-minute drop goal showed how what happened in Cardiff in 2007 had been absorbed, dropping a smart goal while Jerome Kaino was in the sin-bin, and a player,like the team, driving his fate. PRContinue reading...
Source: theguardian.com