"Physically I feel like I’ve been hit by a bus." Tupou Vaa’i is not surprisingly sore after the All Blacks’ victory over the Boks at Eden Park but there is no doubt many of his opponents will be feeling the same way due in no small part to how he impacted the Test.
Vaa’i, who started his team’s 24-17 victory in his preferred position of lock, constantly made his presence felt against a South African team who overall were second best in the contact areas.
Vaa’i’s performance would have added to head coach Scott Robertson’s feelgood factor afterwards.
The Eden Park streak was extended to 51 Tests, Ardie Savea’s 100th was marked in appropriate fashion, and the world champions were given a taste of what the All Blacks endured twice against them in South Africa last year.
What is more, the 25-year-old Vaa’i’s continued development on the biggest stage, alongside that of loose forwards Wallace Sititi and Simon Parker, is a sign of things to come for the All Blacks, who are forming a nucleus of young, dynamic and tough forwards.
And, crucially, Vaa’i’s lineout intelligence and awareness of the laws impressed almost as much as his physicality against the Boks and one of the most obvious examples was the way in which he and skipper Scott Barrett nullified the visitor’s "midfield lineout" which turned into a bit of a flop.
"We were well primed for it," Vaa’i told 1News today. "I guess we understood the rules around it. I was glad I didn’t have to stick my head into another maul which was pretty nice.
"You want to get ahead of the game and us lads had done our homework. We reacted to what we saw in front of us."
That strange little sequence from the Boks, which they have used with some success in previous Tests, was symptomatic of their performance at the weekend.
They were out-thought by a team under pressure to protect a remarkable record and in the end had little more than a scrum and relentless crash-and-bash to fall back on. Despite the narrowness of their game plan, it almost worked.
But after their running game was exposed by the Wallabies at Ellis Park in their first game of the Rugby Championship, the Boks reverted to type in Cape Town but they appear caught between two styles.
Vaai’i thinks the response will be ferocious.
"You obviously saw what they did [in Cape Town] after they lost to the Aussies," he said. "We know what’s coming. They’re going to be up for it – similarly to us after we beat Argentina in Test one. They [Argentina] beat us in Test two, so we know what it’s going to take to get the job done this week. Obviously, the Freedom Cup is on the line too so that’s something we’ll be chasing."
For Robertson, the Boks will likely go back to what they know best in Wellington – a relentless and narrow style which could pay dividends in the likely damp and windy conditions.
Did anything surprise him about the tactics of Rassie Erasmus and company in Auckland?
"Not really," Robertson said today. "We just knew they wouldn’t go away and it would go from the first moment to the last. They’re tough and resilient and they care for their jersey. That’s what we found out right through the game.
"There will be a bit of hurt there."
Robertson confirmed wing Caleb Clarke and loose forward Luke Jacobson had re-joined the squad after injury, with Canterbury hooker George Bell called in as cover for Codie Taylor, who is unavailable after a head knock.
Clarke is a good chance to replace wing Emoni Narawa after Narawa left the field with a rib injury following his early try.
Halfback Noah Hotham is also back in the mix after progressing well from an ankle problem.
And, speaking of hurt, Vaa’i expects the All Black scrum to be better second time around after being demolished in one set piece late in the match at Eden Park.
The tighthead resulted in a try for hooker Malcolm Marx and kick-started their rivals’ comeback.
"We took it on the chin,” Vaa’i said. “We spoke about it this morning. We got our timings wrong and our set up… hopefully it doesn’t happen again."
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