The All Blacks beat the Wallabies in Sydney on Saturday by 19 – 18 in their Tri-Nations encounter, but paid a dear price for their victory with injuries to their mid-field pairing of Luke McAlister and Conrad Smith.

Not only did the win keep New Zealand in the Tri-Nations race, behind leaders South Africa, but it ensured they retained the Bledisloe Cup – with two rounds of the latter competition still remaining.

However, it is doubtful that McAlister and Smith will play again in either the Tri-Nations or Bledisloe Cup series.

McAlister fractured a cheek bone after two head clashes in a torrid match and Smith has another hamstring injury which Henry listed as “serious”.

The injuries apart, Henry was happy with the mental strength and desire his side showed – a victory that came after a 0-2 series whitewash in South Africa earlier this month.

“I’m very proud of the character of the team,” Henry told a media gathering in Sydney.

“This win was the result of mental toughness. We didn’t get the roll of the dice but we kept coming back and performing.

“Australia are a good side and they stretched us a lot. But I was pleased in the ability of the guys to handle that.

“We were behind all night and to keep coming back like that and keep going against the odds is something special.”

All Blacks skipper Richie McCaw echoed his coaches thoughts: “That was a hell of a test match. We had to dig deep. I never doubted how hard the players wanted to do it but to put it together on the track is something else.”

Henry felt both teams had put on a better performance than their losses in South Africa.

“Both sides tried to play some decent football and it was positive for the game.”

Source: rugby365.com

Pic: supersport.co.za

Tags: all blacks, luke mcalister, wallabies