New Zealand braced for intense Ireland battle

New Zealand captain Scott Barrett has warned his teammates they will need another 80-minute effort against Ireland in Dublin on Friday after the side squeezed past England in last weekend’s Autumn international series opener.
Lock Barrett knows the threat of Ireland with ball in hand and is expecting a backlash after his side dumped their opponents out of last year’s Rugby World Cup last year with an epic 28-24 quarter-final win.
That represented another Irish disappointment in a tournament they had high hopes of winning, and Barrett knows the home side will be fired up in front of their own raucous fans.
“It was one of the great matches of the World Cup last year. We know what Ireland will turn up with, a willingness to play. They will be looking to put us under pressure and vice-versa,” Barrett told reporters on Thursday.
“Their ability to play with the ball in hand, their short-pass game … that is why they are world number one. We need to nullify that threat.
“It is going to be an 80-minute effort. We have touched on how big the occasion is playing Ireland at home.”
Ireland claimed a first series win in New Zealand in 2022 that lit the touch paper in a growing rivalry.
“There is a lot of feeling, it is test match rugby and two teams that really want to get a result. At times emotions can boil over, you just have to be accurate with your game.
“It is two teams as that play a similar game, it is going to be intense. Ireland have been right up there, not just the last few years. In the last 10 years they have been leading the way in a lot of areas.
“This tour is huge for where we are as an All Blacks team. It was a tough game last week (against England) and will be even tougher this week. We are going to have to be better.”
This will be New Zealand’s third trip to Dublin since 2018. They lost on both previous visits.