New Zealand All Blacks Ma'a Nonu, right, fends off France's Lionel Nallet during the Rugby World Cup final at Eden Park in Auckland on Sunday.Natacha Pisarenko
Self-reliance and leadership forged in the aftermath of the humiliating 2007 quarter-final defeat by France underpinned the New Zealand All Blacks' 8-7 win over the same opponents in the World Cup final on Sunday.
"A lot of the guys played in the last World Cup and went out in the quarter-finals. Our guys are very self-reliant and they took ownership of the team. They didn't give penalties away and were defensively strong," head coach Graham Henry told a news conference.
Henry, vilified in New Zealand four years ago after the All Blacks failed to get at least to the semi-finals for the first time, did not originally to intend to stand again for a job rivalling that of the country's prime minister in both prestige and pressure.
"I wasn't going to continue after 2007," Henry said with the Webb Ellis trophy sitting on the table before him.
"But from the reaction of the players they wanted the same coaching team and that is why we stood.
"We put a lot of pressure on the players to perform, in 2007 I had to stand up because that is what we expected of the players."
Henry said it was pleasing that a team regularly ranked at number one, committed to playing attractive rugby, had at last won the World Cup.
"I just wanted to be part of a group of people who achieved the ultimate," he said.
"This group of people have done marvellous things in rugby, won grand slams and Tri-Nations and everything else, but they hadn't won the World Cup.
"And it's great to be world champions as well as the best team in the world.
"We had to play a situation that was unexpected and the French played really well and held on to the ball. The ability to hang in there and get the job done was probably something we couldn't have done two or three years ago."
Henry, 65, would not commit himself when asked whether he intended to stand for the job of chief coach again.
"I'm just going to enjoy tonight, have some peace, catch some fish," he said.