NEW ZEALAND v ARGENTINA:SONNY BILL Williams may have joked about replacing Dan Carter at outhalf, but he was deadly serious in vowing New Zealand would not abandon their attacking principles in pursuit of World Cup glory.
The do-or-die demands of the World Cup knockout stages often lead to risk-free rugby, with defences dominating the tournament’s final stages. New Zealand’s quarter-final opponents Argentina will look to stifle the All Blacks at source on Sunday, as they did so successfully against England.
But even without the influential Carter, Williams is confident the All Blacks can stick to their principles. “Hopefully we can still express ourselves and play with the freedom we have been playing with,” he said. “This is knockout football, there’s no tomorrow. You’ve just got to find the right balance – not go into your shell and still express yourself but also recognise it’s finals football. At this stage, it’s about tapering down, getting the mental part right. Every team that faces the All Blacks raises their game and now it’s the knockouts, they’re going to raise it a bit more, we’ve got to be ready. Everyone just needs to raise the bar a couple of per cent each.”
Although Carter urged the All Blacks to “move on” following his tournament-ending groin injury, the New Zealand squad are clearly still affected by his absence. “It’s really tough, a really big blow that DC is out and I’m sure most of the boys would have given up their place,” said Williams. “I would have taken that hit if we could.”
Williams made his mark on rugby union as a centre but he is turning into a valuable utility player for the All Blacks, having starred on the wing during the World Cup. Asked about his favourite position, Williams said: “Probably number 10! Before this tournament I’d never played wing in my life. It’s more of an instinct game and I find that really refreshing too, being free to run.”
Cory Jane and Richard Kahui have been the first-choice wings with Williams providing back-up. Zac Guildford scored four tries on his first World Cup appearance against Canada but he limped out of training yesterday. Captain Richie McCaw played a limited role while Adam Thomson appears to have recovered from knee and ankle problems.
