More silverware driving All Blacks

Friday, 14 September 2018:

The World Cup and Bledisloe Cup are prizes the All Blacks cherish most but they're using the Rugby Championship as motivation to beat the Springboks in Wellington.

Victory for Kieran Read's team will almost certainly hand them a sixth Rugby Championship crown in the seven editions since Argentina joined, expanding it to four teams.

What's more, they'll achieve it with two rounds to spare.

Veteran captain Read usually likes to focus on the process before the prize but admits locking away more silverware in their final home Test of 2018 carries a certain appeal.

"There's something pretty big at the end of the day, if we get it right on Saturday, around The Rugby Championship, so that's in our sights," he said.

"We'd love to do it in the four games but we can't get ahead of ourselves."

A bonus-point win on Saturday will guarantee a third-straight title to New Zealand, while a standard win will leave Australia or Argentina with a thin mathematical hope of finishing top.

The All Blacks haven't lost a Test in the championship since 2015 but Read insists it's not getting boring.

He doesn't anticipate anything like last year's 57-0 drubbing of South Africa, a result that cast a shadow over the nations' famed rivalry.

All Blacks coach Steve Hansen said the seventh-ranked Springboks have appeared a unified group this year under new coach Rassie Erasmus.

The visitors would be on edge following losses to the Pumas in Mendoza and the Wallabies in Brisbane, he said.

"Very rarely do they lose twice in a row, let alone three times in a row so they'll be desperate," Hansen said.

"For us we have to make sure we get our house in order and we turn up. If that's the case then we could be in for one of those special Test matches."






AAP