A late red card for prop Ethan de Groot for a dangerous tackle was the one blip in an otherwise pleasing All Blacks win on Friday, according to head coach Ian Foster.
De Groot crossed just seconds after coming on with his first touch to help New Zealand to an 11-try thrashing of Namibia in the two teams’ second World Cup match in Toulouse.
But, the replacement loosehead was yellow carded for a no-arms tackle attempt, later upgraded to red by the bunker review system.
“It’s always frustrating,” Foster told reporters post-match. “My experience is you’ve got to go away and let it breathe for a bit. There’s a lot of emotion around it.
“We will have a look at it, there was a lot of shoulder on shoulder in that contact, but we will see what comes from it.”
RECAP: Roigard stars in All Blacks rout
Early forward dominance allowed All Black halfbacks Cam Roigard and Damian McKenzie to run the show in a 71-3 hammering of Namibia.
Roigard and McKenzie each scored two tries, with the latter also hitting eight conversions for a personal tally of 26 points.
The pair were a constant threat all over the pitch in Toulouse, Roigard often the catalyst in a dynamic display in just his third Test.
“It was a game we had to win,” Foster said in reference to the All Blacks losing their opening Pool A game 27-13 to France.
“We tried to establish ourselves up front and we got that dominance pretty early which was key to the game.
“It allowed us to pick and choose how we played after that, but obviously we are delighted with the result and it is a step forward.”
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Foster added that the victory was “a job done well. We went in there with a clear idea of how we wanted to play the game”.
Roigard, the coach said, “played really well. He had a pack in front of him that gave him the platform”.
“He took his opportunities, he should be very proud of it. It was a big start for him and he certainly took the opportunity.”
Man of the Match Roigard said the experience had been “pretty surreal”, adding: “The atmosphere was outstanding. We are fortunate that our forwards were dominant, giving me a good platform to play off,” the 22-year-old said.
“Myself and Damian McKenzie have had some training groups together, we are working out how we like to play and his attacking play suits mine so I really enjoyed it tonight.”
McKenzie added: “It was an opportunity not so much to prove a point, but to get out there and play my game.
“I was able to do that tonight at times, there were a couple of loose things, but it was great to get out there and play some rugby.”
Photo: Lionel Bonaventure/AFP