New All Blacks coach Ian Foster admits that New Zealand’s humiliating loss to England in the World Cup semi-final was a painful experience.
Prior to their shock 19-7 semi-final defeat by England, the All Blacks had not lost a single World Cup game since 2007, when France beat them in the quarter-finals.
New Zealand were rampant at the 2011 and 2015 World Cups, becoming the first team to clinch the Webb Ellis trophy back to back.
Gunning for a three-peat at last year’s showpiece, Steve Hansen’s All Blacks appeared well on their way to a third straight World Cup when they were absolutely outclassed by Eddie Jones’ England.
Foster, who was an assistant coach at the time, says the pain of losing to England lingered for a while, but not anymore as they are now looking ahead.
‘We were a group where there wasn’t a single player in our 31-man squad who had lost a game at a Rugby World Cup. So, Japan hurt,’ Foster said.
‘It does not matter how well you prepare, it is what it is. You get reminded of it and you have two choices. Either sit back and think “Woe is us”, or accept that’s sport, we were beaten on the day and we have to be better.
‘To be fair, we are just starting to get excited about a new challenge. There is no point mulling too much over the past,’ he added.
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