THE coaches of the All Blacks continued to confound yesterday by pushing the line that the experimental law variations had completely changed the game of rugby.
Assistant coach Wayne Smith intensified this campaign - which is aimed at either hoodwinking the Wallabies into believing they are going to play a fast, relentless kick-chase game when something else is being devised for tomorrow night at Eden Park, or simply reveals their inability to comprehend the ELVs - when he explained how leaders had to approach the game differently.
This followed the All Blacks coaching panel of Graham Henry, Smith and Steve Hansen saying earlier in the week they had been out-pointed by Wallabies coach Robbie Deans as they were still getting used to the ELVs.
This despite all the All Blacks, like their Wallabies counterparts, having played under the new laws in this year's Super 14.
That press conference where this line was again pushed indicates the pressure on Henry, who although having lost just one Test of 27 at home since taking over in 2004, could be replaced if the All Blacks lose the Bledisloe Cup.
But what bewilders many New Zealanders is that there seems to be an All Blacks push to force the masses into believing scrums and lineouts are no longer important - while they can still be a vital and potent part of the game. It all depends on the tactics, and whether you opt for scrums at free-kick time, and if you kick for the line or boot it downfield.
So concerted is this campaign that the Wallabies suspect it's a ploy to con them into believing the All Blacks will stick to a similar helter-skelter game plan that, because of a high error rate, failed in Sydney last weekend. Meanwhile, they wonder whether something vastly different is being devised.
But Smith, when announcing the surprise selection of centre Richard Kahui on the wing to cover for the injured Leon MacDonald, said yesterday: "The game has changed, and we've gone from coaching a game that played off scrums, lineouts, kick receipts, the odd bit of turnover ball and general kicks to the starting platform being mostly free kicks, and kick receipts from general play.
"The other platforms, such as scrums and lineouts, have been reduced. How you coach in that environment is really important, because if you try and play it the old way, you fatigue yourselves, which is what we did last weekend.
"If the ELVs are accepted globally, it is going to change the game. Obviously, we will have to look at substitutions. The ball in play is now around 39 minutes, to a decade or so ago being around 24 minutes. This will make an impact of fitness levels."
Smith said that as there was now an abundance of midfield kicks, "If you are going to play tennis, you may need two umpires."
Thankfully, he knows there are options. "You can choose the way you play," he said. "There will still be that element of choice. You don't have to tap every free kick. I do believe the free kick is a positive, because it brings momentum to the game. But you don't have to take them. You can scrum them if you want to."
There wasn't as much confusion when the Wallabies arrived in Auckland last night, and even some cheers when Deans returned to his old country on official business for the first time since moving to Australia.
When he emerged from customs, a small group of Australian supporters cheered as Deans signed autographs and had his photograph taken with fans.
In the background, Wallabies prop Al Baxter, being interviewed by the media, was distracted by the cheering. Seeing it was for his coach, Baxter commented: "Wow, a hero's welcome."