WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) Wales hopes to disrupt the launch of a new All Blacks era in the first test on Saturday by ending a 63-year losing streak against a team they call ''the good guys of rugby.''
New Zealand will be playing its first test since its win over Australia at Twickenham in October made it the first team to win consecutive World Cups. It will be without a host of players who were the core of World Cup-winning teams in 2011 and 2015, including captain Richie McCaw, flyhalf Dan Carter and centers Conrad Smith and Ma'a Nonu.
In the absence of players whose retirements deprive the team of more than 700 test caps, Wales believes the All Blacks might be vulnerable. But All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has dismissed that notion warning that New Zealand expects to grow stronger.
