Sam Kane: “We want to make New Zealand proud”

Balance between head and heart this week: “A lot of it comes down to our preparation. We have a lot of experience in this team and it would be ridiculous not to take advantage of that. We’ve been very clear on how we’ve built the way we want to play as a team. Strategically and mentally, we’re in a good place and with that comes confidence. “As always, there will be a lot of passion and determination to get the game off to a good start.”

“But we’ve played two elimination games in a row and I think we’re in good shape in that regard. The boys have prepared well, physically and mentally. Even if it’s a final, we’ve got to believe in ourselves to go out and play a good game of rugby.

On whether they should match their game against Ireland: “To be honest, I think we have to be better. We’ve been building momentum every week and we need to be better both defensively and offensively on Saturday. If we can achieve our best performance of the year, we’ll have a good chance.”

How much they did in Ian Foster’s last game as coach: “Maybe we’ll save that for after the game. There are many reasons why we want to play well. Neither is more important than the other. We want to make New Zealand proud. The support is really overwhelming, it makes you proud to be a New Zealander. “That’s probably our biggest motivation.”

World.Rugby
Loans: Reuters