Ahead of the second Test, Dave Rennie said he “reckoned you can do both”.
That is, you can “entertain the crowds” and “win” in international rugby.
On Saturday night, after copping a 57-22 hiding to see the Bledisloe Cup lost for a 19th straight year, Rennie’s optimistic idealism on how rugby should be played took a hit.
“Everything falls back on me, doesn’t it?” said Rennie, taking responsibility, just like his captain Michael Hooper did minutes earlier regarding the calamitous second-half, for the loss.
“So, we went in with a plan, if we can’t execute that plan, we’ll seriously look at what we’re doing.
“We want to have an optimistic mindset around how we play as well, but you’ve got to play what’s in front of you.
“In the end, the players are implementing what we’re trying to put on the park, so clearly we’ll take responsibility for it.”
