In 2007 I attended a Strength and Conditioning Workshop in Brisbane run by the Head Trainer of the almighty Brisbane Broncos, Dan Baker.
Towards the end of the Workshop we had a Q & A's session when, being the only Kiwi, I had to ask Dan what he thought of the All Blacks "Reconditioning Period" leading up to the 2007 Rugby World Cup. At the time I was extremely confident about our AB's and understood exactly why the Sports Science Staff wanted to keep our boys out of the Super 14 in favour of a Recovery, Speed and Strength building phase.
Dan chuckled and simply replied;
"It's not how I'd do it...What'll happen to their match fitness?"
I brushed it off telling myself we'd get enough match fitness in the Tri-Nations and Rugby World Cup pool games. Alas...we dipped out to France in the Quarter Finals.
All Black Injuries
Now I should be careful here and state that I don't believe that the Reconditioning Period was the sole reason for our AB's bowing out of World Cup Grand Final contention but it only takes a couple of injuries to seriously inhibit a team's performance and lead to loss in a high priority match.
Coming back from the reconditioning period, we suffered major injuries, blow, after blow from players getting themselves into "unlucky" positions such as Chris Jack's Hyper-extended knees or simply pulling up short with muscle strains such as Conrad Smith and Reuben Thorne.
Then the most significant injuries ever to hit the All Blacks...Dan Carter and Ritchie McCaw both pulled out of the most important and devastating game since the previous world Cup, the Semi Final against Australia. Right when we needed the two best players the world has seen in their positions, they're forced off with injury.
Was it Typical Bad Luck or was it a Lack of Match Conditioning?
There's no way to be sure but Henry and co survived and the conditioning staff were given the boot. This time around there is no "Reconditioning Period". Every All Black, in the running for this year's World Cup is allowed to play in the Super 15.
Will this make a Difference to our Rugby World Cup Success?
So far there are few injury concerns to speak of and our teams seem to be performing well in the Super 15. We haven't done anything obviously conservative this time around and our boys seem to be getting plenty of rugby, with no talk of "needing a break from rugby".
We all know a fit All Blacks team can beat any side on the planet but will they remain fit enough?
Towards the end of the Workshop we had a Q & A's session when, being the only Kiwi, I had to ask Dan what he thought of the All Blacks "Reconditioning Period" leading up to the 2007 Rugby World Cup. At the time I was extremely confident about our AB's and understood exactly why the Sports Science Staff wanted to keep our boys out of the Super 14 in favour of a Recovery, Speed and Strength building phase.
Dan chuckled and simply replied;
"It's not how I'd do it...What'll happen to their match fitness?"
I brushed it off telling myself we'd get enough match fitness in the Tri-Nations and Rugby World Cup pool games. Alas...we dipped out to France in the Quarter Finals.
All Black Injuries
Now I should be careful here and state that I don't believe that the Reconditioning Period was the sole reason for our AB's bowing out of World Cup Grand Final contention but it only takes a couple of injuries to seriously inhibit a team's performance and lead to loss in a high priority match.
Coming back from the reconditioning period, we suffered major injuries, blow, after blow from players getting themselves into "unlucky" positions such as Chris Jack's Hyper-extended knees or simply pulling up short with muscle strains such as Conrad Smith and Reuben Thorne.
Then the most significant injuries ever to hit the All Blacks...Dan Carter and Ritchie McCaw both pulled out of the most important and devastating game since the previous world Cup, the Semi Final against Australia. Right when we needed the two best players the world has seen in their positions, they're forced off with injury.
Was it Typical Bad Luck or was it a Lack of Match Conditioning?
There's no way to be sure but Henry and co survived and the conditioning staff were given the boot. This time around there is no "Reconditioning Period". Every All Black, in the running for this year's World Cup is allowed to play in the Super 15.
Will this make a Difference to our Rugby World Cup Success?
So far there are few injury concerns to speak of and our teams seem to be performing well in the Super 15. We haven't done anything obviously conservative this time around and our boys seem to be getting plenty of rugby, with no talk of "needing a break from rugby".
We all know a fit All Blacks team can beat any side on the planet but will they remain fit enough?
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