Wales head coach Wayne Pivac admits his side could have done better physically against the All Blacks in their 55-23 loss in Cardiff.
The result is Wales’ 33rd consecutive defeat against the All Blacks, who are starting to find their rhythm, as shown by a powerful performance.
The All Blacks started brilliantly, building up a 17-0 lead which Wales did well to close down, but the hosts were completely blown away in the second-half.
More physicality
Pivac said his side were targeting the fast start but, after failing to do so, was pleased that Wales clawed themselves back into the game.
“There were a lot of good individual performances but I think collectively as a group we needed to, at times, be a little bit more physical, come off the line and meet New Zealand,” Pivac said.
“We wanted a fast start, but we didn’t get that. We leaked 17 points pretty early on.
“We were very pleased to get back into the game once we’d got through that part.
“New Zealand sides are very good in the last 10 minutes before half-time and probably the start after half-time.
“We focused on that and did well to get back into that game I thought. We started the second half as we’d hoped and that was to score first and get within seven.
“Unfortunately after that we weren’t able to exit and you put a lot of that down to the pressure New Zealand exerted on us in and around our 22.
“That was really disappointing to concede and it was clear at that point we started to chase the game a little bit. Chasing the game, the score went away from us a little bit at the end.”
Quick ball
Pivac was impressed with the All Blacks’ quick ball in the red zone, which his side needs to work on generating and defending.
“They got speed of ball in our 22 which most teams are after – and we weren’t able to do that,” said Pivac.
“Like all good New Zealand sides at the breakdown you question some of the angles they came in from, but that’s the way it works on the day.
“We’ve got to make sure we can combat that. We will definitely be looking at that area of the game and making sure we improve next week.
“To release the pressure straight after a score is something we’ve got to look at. We have to make sure we get right for next week and for other games.”
Wales faces Argentina next weekend, followed by Georgia and finally Australia in the Autumn Nations Series.
Click Here: South Korea soccer tracksuit