Hansen happy with All Blacks win but says room for improvement
SHOWS: YOKOHAMA, JAPAN (SEPTEMBER 21, 2019) (IMG/RWCL - SEE RESTRICTIONS BEFORE USE)
1. (SOUNDBITE) (English) NEW ZEALAND COACH STEVE HANSEN SAYING:
"Everybody knew that this was going to be a big match and obviously it was, both teams I thought played very well at times and very happy to come out with the win."
2. WHITE FLASH
3. (SOUNDBITE) (English) NEW ZEALAND COACH STEVE HANSEN, ASKED IF HE WAS HAPPY, SAYING:
"Well I guess we are, we won, didn't we, so you've got to be happy with that. We we perfect? No, but you're never going to be at this stage of the tournament and that was the interesting part about this game for both teams. They arrive here and you're not in the swing of the tournament and right from the get-go you've got the biggest game possibly of the group and we've come out on top of it. But again, we're very happy that we did but there's plenty of stuff we can work on."
4. (SOUNDBITE) (English) NEW ZEALAND CAPTAIN KIERAN READ SAYING:
"Their defence was very strong across that whole game and they kept coming at us. We expected that from them, they're a team that really wants to apply pressure to us on attack. What you can't do early in the game is sometimes get those balls away, so you've either got to get deeper or try and work on your skills and really it took two opportunities from us in that first half."
5. WHITE FLASH
6. (SOUNDBITE) (English) SOUTH AFRICAN COACH RASSIE ERASMUS SAYING:
"I think they won it, I don't they we lost it. I think two tries to one, they definitely deserved to win the game. I think if we concede 11 penalties to two you're going to struggle to beat New Zealand."
STORY: New Zealand coach Steve Hansen professed himself pleased with his side's opening World Cup victory over South Africa on Saturday (September 21) but admitted the All Blacks were far from perfect.
Four minutes of first-half brilliance led an otherwise unconvincing New Zealand to a 23-13 victory over the Springboks in a clash between two World Cup favourites.
South Africa pinned a scrappy New Zealand back for 20 minutes but, with only three points to show for it, the Springboks were left stunned by two scintillating team tries from wing George Bridge and lock Scott Barrett.
A Pieter Steph du Toit try, moments after a stunning Cheslin Kolbe break, got South Africa right back in the match after halftime. Handre Pollard cut the deficit to four points with a drop goal but penalties from Richie Mo'unga and Beauden Barrett consigned South Africa to their first defeat of 2019.
South Africa coach Rassie Erasmus conceded the All Blacks deserved to win, pointing out they only gave away two penalties to his side's 11.
(Production: Jim Hatley)
