New Zealand are refusing to take Quade Cooper lightly ahead Sunday's World Cup semi-final.
All Blacks wary of Aussie fly-half ahead of last-four showdown
New Zealand are refusing to take Quade Cooper lightly ahead Sunday's World Cup semi-final.
The Australian fly-half produced an erratic performance during the Wallabies' quarter-final victory over South Africa at the weekend, but All Blacks assistant coach Wayne Smith remains wary and is backing Cooper to bounce back.
"I can only talk about experiences that we've had with them, and he (Cooper) has played pretty well against us," former Northampton boss Smith said.
"He is mercurial, he is dangerous. If he has a real good day then you are in trouble, so we've got a lot of respect for him.
"People probably say the same thing about any player who has a bad trot.
"We had an experience with Zac Guildford (All Blacks wing) for example, who had a poor game before the World Cup, got a chance in the World Cup and then had a blinder.
Massive
"Quality players come right pretty quickly."
As for Sunday's game, Smith describes it as "massive" as New Zealand bid to reach their first World Cup final since 1995.
He added: "I don't think you can make any assumptions about them (Australia).
"We've got huge respect for them, and I am sure they've got great respect for us.
"We've played each other often over the last few years. We know them well, they know us well. We know it's going to be a massive encounter."
Meanwhile, New Zealand have welcomed Bath-bound number 10 Stephen Donald and wing Hosea Gear into their squad as respective replacements for the injured Colin Slade and Mils Muliaina.
