Legendary New Zealand coach blames Super Rugby for All Blacks' downfall

New Zealand head into the Bledisloe Cup off the back of three successive defeats to the Springboks where the hosts were dominant in the scrum and under the high ball.

Those areas have been constantly exposed since the 2023 Rugby World Cup with neither Scott Robertson nor Dave Rennie able to solve the problem.

If the All Blacks are to win their fourth World Cup next year then they will need to improve in some of the basics of the sport.

However, the lack of South African sides in Super Rugby makes that more difficult, according to Henry, with the former New Zealand head coach questioning the quality of the current competition.

"Obviously, we've got to improve the game we're playing. I think it reflects the level below, the Super Rugby level below and whether that's strong enough to produce top rugby players at Test match level," he told Sport Nation.

"You're learning the game really, learning to play a team like South Africa, who are very good at scrum and very good at driving lineouts, you're learning how to play that at Test match level rather than at Super Rugby level because we don't play the South African teams at that level anymore.

"It's a challenge in that regard but that's the reality, that's the way it is so you've just got to do your best with it."

Henry, who has been hired as a selector by Rennie, also discussed the high ball issue which has plagued the team over the past few years.

The 80-year-old has seen improvement over the past few games but concedes that it remains a problem for the All Blacks.

"It is obviously a concern and the guys are working at it. It's getting better, we would like it to be perfect," he said.

"It's not perfect but they're working at it and they've got a strategy to try and do their best with it. We've spent a lot of time on the high ball, believe it or not.

"Again, I think it's a reflection of the level below. We don't play that way as much as opposition teams do. We don't get that opportunity to perfect that at the level below, so we have to perfect it at this level.

"Obviously, we're working at it but it's a concern. Hopefully it will get better. The more you work at it, the better it will get I assume - it's an issue."

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