It’s little wonder that a day after the All Blacks' victory in Edinburgh a relaxed Ian Foster was inspired to make a pun about his side avoiding injuries - “Scot-free”, he described it - as he looked towards their final Test of the year at Twickenham.
Foster gambled in making six changes to his backline for Scotland after a comprehensive victory over Wales in Cardiff a week earlier.
It paid off with a 31-23 win – never mind the untidy stuff in the middle of it – and he now has a refreshed and motivated squad to take on England, their nemesis from the last World Cup.
He also has a greater idea of who is up to the rigours of international rugby.
Right wing Mark Telea, who scored two of the All Blacks’ four tries, appears to be one.
Telea, on his Test debut, displayed the flashing feet and attacking instincts that have lit up Super Rugby over the past couple of years and while he was bundled into touch on one occasion, and appeared to get a little lost on a kick-chase on another, was not fazed in the slightest.
The news, however, may not be so good for halfback Finlay Christie, who was not as influential as he would have liked on a rare start and was overshadowed by 30-year-old TJ Perenara, who delivered a masterclass of control on his arrival in the second half and will have revived hopes of a trip to France next year.
With Folau Fakatava a doubt for Super Rugby next year due to a knee injury, Perenara and Brad Weber appear greater chances to back up Aaron Smith.
The news wasn’t so good either for blindside flanker Akira Ioane; the Blues player was not as effective as he would have liked as the All Blacks battled to stop Scotland’s momentum in scoring 23 unanswered points, with Shannon Frizell impressing off the bench with his much more direct approach.
The return to fitness next year of Ethan Blackadder may also put the squeeze on Ioane, particularly with Dalton Papalii playing so well alongside Ardie Savea.
Elsewhere, second-five David Havili lacked timing and threw another intercept pass as the All Blacks attempted a breakout (eerily similar to the one he threw in the defeat to France in Paris last November), with Jordie Barrett, solid at fullback, likely to wear the No.12 jersey against England which will allow Beauden to move to the back.
Smith will resume at halfback, with Richie Mo’unga back at first-five and Rieko Ioane, good off the bench, back at centre.
If Caleb Clarke stays at left wing, the only backline question is who will play on the right – Telea or Sevu Reece? It could be that the experience of Reece is preferred, but it wouldn’t surprise to see Telea retain his place.
Sam Whitelock and Brodie Retallick, the latter back from his red card suspension, will return to the second row, with Foster having the option of starting Scott Barrett or Frizell at No.6.
The All Blacks generally perform well at Twickenham – they have played there four times in the last 10 years and have won three – the loss coming in 2012 – but the last two Tests have been close; a 16-15 victory on their last visit in 2018, and a 24-21 win before that in 2014.
So Foster's easy manner as he plans to avenge their semifinal defeat in Yokohama is understandable.
And it will surprise no one that the occasionally provocative England coach Eddie Jones has helped to set the scene by saying his side are “going to go after” the All Blacks after describing them as a “giant” of the game.
“If we go after them then they are there for the taking and we’re going to go after them,” Jones said after England beat Japan.
“For an England player it’s a massive opportunity. If you look at the history of the sport, the game has been going for what, 150 years, and England has won 22 per cent of Tests against New Zealand, so there’s a narrative about the game that says England can’t beat New Zealand.
“At the 2019 World Cup we showed that if you’ve got the right attitude. The right game plan, then history can be broken.”
Foster, not surprisingly, wasn’t as keen to revisit that event in which the All Blacks were comprehensively beaten when he was assistant coach.
“You have a three-year gap and there’s a little bit of the unknown for both teams,” Foster said. “It’s more that – we haven’t spoken about 2019. We assume we’ll get lots of questions on it but that’s really in the past.”
He did feel the need to reference England’s recent defeat to Argentina at Twickenham, however.
“I guess they’ll see this as a chance for a bit of redemption from that loss but it’s always special at Twickenham.”
The time for gambling is over. After a torrid year, Foster will name his strongest side for England and a win of any sort would be evidence that the All Blacks have made real progress under him.
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