Dan Carter has warned New Zealand’s rivals for the World Cup that the holders have yet to reach the high standards they set for this tournament and even though their progress to the quarter-finals as pool champions may be little more than a formality with matches against Georgia and Tonga to come, their sole focus is on improvement.
The All Blacks arrived in Cardiff on Saturday, just in time for the Welsh capital to go into all-night celebrations after the victory over England, and they play Georgia at the Millennium Stadium on Friday night, the day after Wales face Fiji there.
“We have played two matches and virtually everyone in the squad has had a run, but even though we have had victories over Argentina and Namibia we need to step things up,” said the outside-half Carter, the record points scorer in international rugby. “Georgia will be our third game this tournament and it is time we improved as a team, myself included.
“We do not have as many clips on Georgia as we would have liked, far fewer than if we were playing someone like Australia, and that was the case with Namibia last week. I am part of the strategy group and we will make sure that we are prepared, working now on how we want to play the game.
“I hope to play, but I will have to wait and see how the week pans out. I am keen to get back into it: you never want to watch from the sidelines, but with the strength in our squad it is going to happen to us throughout the tournament.”
Carter, if selected, will be returning to a ground where he has painful memories. It was at the Millennium Stadium in 2007 that the All Blacks were knocked out of the World Cup at the quarter-final stage by France, the only time they have failed to reach the last four in the tournament. A repeat of the fixture will occur if New Zealand top their pool and France finish second in theirs.
“Thanks for the reminder,” he said after it was pointed out to him. “I have a number of great memories in Cardiff and have achieved a lot here. The Millennium Stadium is the place in the world I most love playing at. The atmosphere there is awesome and I am sure that will be the case on Friday night.
“People in Cardiff and Wales are rugby mad, like Kiwis back home. They are so passionate about the game and it is such an awesome stadium. As a kicker, it is handy having a roof on it to take away the wind and rain you can have a bit of in Cardiff. The crowd is always electric, and while it will be slightly different this week because we are not playing Wales, I am sure the atmosphere will be amazing. It will be interesting to see how many of the spectators support Georgia.”
Carter was asked whether, if he had been confronted with the late penalty that England were awarded against Wales at Twickenham, he would have opted for the kick at goal for the three points that would have levelled the scores with more than a minute to go or, like Chris Robshaw, gone for a lineout and the chance to win.
“It was a great game of rugby that could have gone either way,” he said. “The momentum shifted throughout the match. Wales were excellent in the second half considering the injuries they have had. We arrived in Cardiff that day and the place went pretty mad afterwards.
“England backed themselves to win the match by kicking to touch and you have to trust the skipper’s call on it. Whether I would have done the same, I cannot say. You never know until you are put in that position and have a feel for the game. It is a tough one to comment on. Hindsight is a beautiful thing and I am sure that now they would go for the shot at goal, but at that time and at that moment they backed their lineout. You have to go with the call.”
