After an opening victory against Argentina, which the All Blacks had to earn, New Zealand will target a more serene outing when they play Namibia in their second Pool C match of the 2015 Rugby World Cup at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London.
New Zealand were in a spot of bother against Argentina with about 25 minutes to go in the match, before the power and pace of Sonny Bill Williams and their superior fitness changed the course of the contest completely.
The All Blacks will know Argentina are probably the toughest opponents in their group, which also consists of Tonga and Georgia, and the champions' target on Thursday will be to win the match against Namibia with a bonus point, even with a largely-second string side, which will be captained by Sam Cane.
"One of the things that we pride ourselves on is trying to improve our performance from the previous one," New Zealand coach Steve Hansen said.
"We have a line in the sand as far as the game against Argentina goes. The group going out on Thursday have to change that line to a higher performance level. It does not matter who we are playing.
"We can't just assume that Namibia will lie down because they won't. They will be proud men and will come out and give it everything they have got.
"We will give Namibia total respect because that's what they deserve as another playing nation. Rugby is a funny thing and sport is a funny thing. If you don't prepare properly then you can get a hiding."
Namibia would have certainly prepared as well as possible, but even they will know nothing much can be done if the All Blacks decide to come to the fore on Thursday. Expectations, when you are the lowest-ranked team in the tournament, are bound to be pretty low, but the fact that no-one expects Namibia to even put up a fight might just work for them, with that Japan victory over South Africa, no doubt, in their minds going into this crunch encounter.
"At the 2011 World Cup we turned up just to participate," Namibia fly-half Theuns Kotze told the Rugby World Cup's official website. "But in the last four years and especially the last four months, Namibian rugby has grown a hell of a lot.
"We didn't come here to participate and we will use every match to gain momentum. We are looking for our first win in a Rugby World Cup and this is the first time we have come here to challenge ourselves.
"We have played the Springboks and Wales at the previous World Cup. It will be a once in a lifetime opportunity for the guys now, but if Namibian rugby continues on this trend then it will be more of a game that they will get used to.
"For us as a team and a nation, it is a good chance to give the future stars a platform to build on."
Teams: New Zealand: Colin Slade; Nehe Milner-Skudder, Malakai Fekitoa, Sonny Bill Williams, Julian Savea; Beauden Barrett, TJ Perenara; Victor Vito, Sam Cane (c), Liam Messam; Sam Whitelock, Luke Romano; Charlie Faumuina, Codie Taylor, Ben Franks.
Replacements: Keven Mealamu, Wyatt Crockett, Tony Woodcock, Kieran Read, Richie McCaw, Tawera Kerr-Barlow, Ma'a Nonu, Ben Smith.
Namibia: Johan Tromp; David Philander, JC Greyling, Johan Deysel Jr, Conrad Marais; Theuns Kotze, Eugene Jantjies; Leneve Damens, Tinus du Plessis, Jacques Burger (c); PJ van Lill, Tijuee Uanivi; Aranos Coetzee, Torsten Van Jaarsveld Jaco Engels.
Replacements: Louis van der Westhuizen, Raoul Larson, Casper Viviers, Renaldo Bothma, Janco Venter, Rohan Kitshoff, Eniell Buitendag, Chrysander Botha.
Where to Watch Live
Get the match highlights HERE
The 2015 Rugby World Cup match between the All Blacks and Namibia is scheduled for an 8 pm local time (12.30 am IST, 3 pm ET) start. Sony Six will show the match live in India and the rest of the sub continent.
The action will be shown live in New Zealand on Sky Sport, while the match can also be watched via live streaming on Sky Go NZ.
Viewers in the UK can watch the match action on ITV1, with the online live streaming option on ITV Player.
Audience in the USA can watch the Rugby World Cup game live on Universal Sports, while New Zealand vs Namibia can also be live streamed on Universal Sports Online.
Viewers in Australia can watch the All Blacks vs Namibia live on Fox Sports 2, with the live stream option on Foxtel Play. South Africa viewers can watch the Pool C match on SuperSport, with the live stream option on SuperSport Live Video.
