Triumphant All Blacks 'will not ease off'

The silverware may be in the cabinet, but the All Blacks are adamant they remain as hungry as ever ahead of the Tri-Nations finale in Sydney on Saturday night.

And now that the Bledisloe Cup (for the seventh straight year) and Tri-Nations trophy have both been tucked away, the All Blacks are turning to two important factors as they look to bring a jubilant, but jet-lagged, Wallabies outfit back to earth at ANZ Stadium.

The buzzwords "internal pressure" are being bandied about as the All Blacks go through preparations for what is surely only a dead rubber in name, and at last recognition is surfacing of the special place in history that beckons for this side if it keeps trotting out the test wins like it is.

The New Zealanders had their first significant hitout of the week at Leichardt Oval yesterday, though did make one major concession to the fallout of the earthquake in Canterbury when they put their team naming back to Thursday.

That's because assistant coach Steve Hansen only joined the team yesterday after remaining in Christchurch to deal with a badly damaged home.

We know Aaron Cruden will get his first test start – that has been clearly signposted since it was made public Dan Carter would be having surgery on an ankle – but the All Blacks coaches must be tempted to give some other greenhorns, such as Israel Dagg and Victor Vito, a run under the more intense pressure of a Bledisloe burner.

Whatever side is chosen, outstanding lock Tom Donnelly – in two short years now a foundation stone of this team – says the players are desperate to keep their standards as high as they've been throughout an impressive season that sees this side on the verge of greatness.

"There's probably a bit of internal pressure," Donnelly said yesterday. "We just want to see how good this team is. In games that don't really mean much good teams still perform. We've just put it on ourselves to finish on a high note and keep that mental edge over Australia."

On Saturday night the New Zealanders can tick off two significant marks with yet another victory. They can become the first side to go 6-0 through the Tri-Nations and the first All Blacks outfit to post 10 straight test victories over the Wallabies – breaking a mark that stretches back 63 years.

Donnelly wasn't too keen to buy into the record book as a motivator theory – he's probably too old school for that – but rookie backline utility Rene Ranger let the cat out of the bag when he confirmed coach Graham Henry had already reminded the team of the significance of their winning streak.

"The attitude is still good," said the Northlander who is another youngster eyeing a potential opportunity this week in Sydney. "We're out there to win, to put the foot down, even though the cups are in the cabinet.

"Ted was going on about 14-0 and we've got to make it 15-0. The boys' mindset is pretty clear – we've got to win this game, we don't want to finish the Tri-Nations with the Aussies winning."

- © Fairfax NZ News