All Blacks ready for anything if semifinal goes to shootout

TOKYO (AP) — New Zealand coach Steve Hansen will be prepare the All Blacks for a place-kicking shootout if the Rugby World Cup semifinal against England is somehow tied after extra-time and sudden-death extra time on Saturday.

He doesn’t think it’ll come to a shootout, but he knows stranger things have happened.

New Zealand lost the Cricket World Cup final to England at Lord’s earlier this year on a countback of boundaries scored, which was the official tiebreaker after the game finished tied and again after each team had played a so-called super over. New Zealand took all 10 England wickets in the regulation match, and so the countback of boundaries became contentious.

The New Zealand cricketers accepted the decision, saying the rules were decided before the tournament.

Hansen wasn’t a fan of the boundary countback, saying “I don’t know if they got the cricket one right.”