Analysis: The All Blacks must improve their mental game or they are heading for their worst ever World Cup campaign, argues Patrick McKendry.
The All Blacks will almost certainly field a better team in their next big World Cup match – a now must-win against Italy in Lyon on September 30 — but who can say whether they will make better decisions?
On the evidence of their 27-13 defeat at a heaving Stade de France this morning, nothing can be taken for granted as far as the Italians are concerned. Or the All Blacks.
Another observation which may be veering close to stating the obvious is: Ian Foster's men badly need Jordie Barrett to bring some starch and perhaps a little fear-factor back to the midfield, and the same goes with skipper Sam Cane in the No.7 jersey.
They were both badly missed as their team put themselves into a position where they could have kicked on after scoring through Mark Telea at the start of the second half to re-take a 13-9 lead but they went AWOL from there — the pressure, and, crucially, discipline exerted by France too hot to handle.
It remains to be seen whether Italy have the wherewithal to do something similar. Indeed, it's unlikely they will be able to maintain the sort of intensity managed by Les Bleus, but the premise remains: Have the All Blacks got the mental strength and clarity of thought to do it in a quarter-final when they failed so badly here in a game they didn't need to win?
Again, at this rate it appears unlikely, which means the All Blacks, having lost their first ever pool game, are heading towards their worst ever World Cup campaign.
Before we get to that point let's consider what Cane's absence meant because the All Blacks badly missed his voice — and no one can doubt that he is a trusted and highly valued leader in this team. They also could have done with his breakdown and defensive accuracy.
Dalton Papali'i can be a fine player but he doesn't possess the Test match temperament Cane does. It was Papali'i's off-the-ball push on an opponent which provided the penalty for France's first try, and he was very fortunate not to be penalised for playing the ball in a ruck when offside in another incident.
Strategically, the All Blacks switched from a willingness to kick the ball every time they received it to running it from their own territory, and the latter is fraught with danger in a high-stakes Test.
They couldn't seem to find the right balance on attack — and that's another decision-making failure — despite cutting apart France's re-shuffled midfield via Rieko Ioane the first time they got the ball.
Why the All Black's didn't feel the need to attack that channel in the middle of the field again beggars belief, but that's an area of expertise for Jordie Barrett, and his ability to challenge defenders through his sheer bulk and determination will free space for the likes of Telea, who was at his elusive best, and Will Jordan, who was not.
For all of Anton Lienert-Brown's qualities as a ball player, he was virtually anonymous after his early sleight-of-hand with Ioane and no one quite brings directness to a No.12 jersey than Barrett the younger.
In isolation, this defeat doesn't spell doomsday for the All Blacks' hopes in France, but their tournament takes on a different complexion when the setback is weighed with their horror show against the Springboks at Twickenham.
This morning those same frailties emerged: a lack of discipline in terms of conceding penalties (12, to France's remarkable four), poor skill execution under pressure (see Ethan de Groot's knock-on, Vaa'i's drop, Codie Taylor's pass into touch just before halftime, and Beauden Barrett's forward pass to Telea), and a general failure to adapt.
Foster predictably put on a brave face afterwards but from here he needs to become far more demanding in order to save his legacy.
Cam Roigard, not involved this morning, did his budding reputation as the All Blacks' second best halfback no harm and I would suggest Foster ask loose forward Ethan Blackadder to get on the next plane as Emoni Narawa's injury replacement, if he hasn't already.
The All Blacks need physicality and discipline. They may not have time to find the latter but the former at least is now a non-negotiable.
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