Barrett says All Blacks impressed by young France talent
Playmaker Beauden Barrett said Saturday that the All Blacks remained wary of a talented but inexperienced France touring side, despite a resounding 43-17 victory in the second Test on Saturday.
New Zealand scored six tries to two in Wellington after fielding a starting line-up boasting 708 Test caps which had too much quality for a France team with just 60.
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Coach Fabien Galthie made 10 starting changes to his French side who had pushed the All Blacks unexpectedly close in a 31-27 loss in the first Test in Dunedin.
Galthie chose to leave most of the stars from his Six Nations champions at home and instead brought 22 uncapped players for the three-match series.
Some New Zealand pundits, such as former All Black Justin Marshall, said France were being "disrespectful" in bringing an experimental squad, while other critics said it devalued Test rugby.
But veteran fly-half Barrett was having none of it after France shared the second-half spoils 14-14, fighting back from being 29-3 down at half-time.
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"Look, we respect whatever team is put out on the park," Barrett said.
"It's a French rugby team and we're all aware of the depth that France have."
Barrett said he understood Galthie's strategy of building for the future and said that France's domestic Top 14 league was a deep resource of Test-class performers.
"A lot of young talented players are getting opportunities here, which is valuable for them," said Barrett, looking ahead to the third and final Test next Saturday in Hamilton.
"And with that comes a lot of freedom that we have to be very wary of, so we've got a lot of respect for the 15, the 23, every weekend.
"We're doing a lot of homework on the individuals, so that's paying respect to those players."
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