A cross-code chat with All Blacks coach Graham Henry has given the coach of New Zealand's under-17 football world cup team plenty of confidence, ahead of next Tuesday's opening world cup game against Canada.
The Young Football Ferns are staying at the same Takapuna hotel where Henry's All Blacks were based while preparing for yesterday's trial match in Henderson, so head coach Paul Temple and Henry met over coffee on the eve of the Barbarians match.
Temple says the All Blacks boss was very accommodating and he was pleased to hear the similarities between each team's approach to big games.
He says they talked about team culture, how the leadership structure works within the team, and how to try and get the best out of players under pressure.
Temple admitted having the All Blacks at the same hotel had been distracting for his teenaged players at first, but says the All Blacks' curiosity about a FIFA World Cup and the his team's preparations had helped diffuse that.
