All Blacks assistant coach Steve Hansen dismisses injury report for Richie McCaw - Rugby News
The assistant coach for All Blacks, Steve Hansen, has turned down speculation that their skipper, Richie McCaw, could miss the semi-final battle against Wallabies due to an injury to his foot. The assistant told the media on October 13 that McCaw has been
struggling with the same injury for the past one year but he is managing things quite nicely. He clarified that Matt Todd’s presence in the All Blacks training squad is not evidence of the captain’s injury.
Hansen addressed a press conference in his team’s hotel and informed the media about the latest to Richie McCaw’s injury. He stated that Matt Todd is spending his time with the side as he is present in Auckland and the situation made sense. He added that,
“Matt Todd is in Auckland and it just made common sense to have him here. Matt Todd is training with us as you all know and have written about. Matt Todd is part of the wider training group and trained with us in Christchurch as did other players down there.”
Matt Todd also talked to the journalists and said that if he is given an opportunity to play the important match against Wallabies he will try his best to boost his side. Whereas talking about the game plane for his team, Todd stated that they would try
to keep things as simple as possible. He added that senior players would be required to put in extra effort in the match to gain better results. He further went on by saying that, “We have a simple game plan and try to keep it as simple as possible so it is
not too hard to learn it is just a matter of understanding. The top players in the big games have to play as top players.”
The All Blacks are expected to announce their final squad in a couple of days which will determine the exact status of Richie McCaw’s availability. The presence of their regular skipper is very important for the squad when they will face the fearsome Wallabies
on Eden Park, Auckland.
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