Wales coach Warren Gatland’s record against the southern hemisphere giants of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa now stands at played 27, won one, lost 26 after a 34-16 defeat by the All Blacks.

That solitary win was against the Wallabies, 21-18, back in 2008, but Gatland insisted his team did not lack self-belief against the SANZAR nations, praising New Zealand’s kicking game in a brutally entertaining match in Cardiff.

“It’s not a matter of belief. It’s sometimes just getting across the line and doing it and the first time you do that it’s easier the next time,” said Gatland.

“That’s a big thing for us — we get over that line and that’s what will create that belief and that composure to finish a game off.”

Gatland, himself a Kiwi who took charge of Wales after the 2007 World Cup, added of the “nearly-men” tag: “It’s disappointing. You’ve got to keep working hard to try to rectify that in terms of critical moments when we’ve come under a bit of pressure.

“These are games you’re playing against the best teams in the world and we’ve grasped every opportunity to try and play New Zealand, Australia and South Africa because that’s the way we play better, playing in that white-hot atmosphere and conditions and intensity of international rugby and it’s the way these players will continue to improve.”

The New Zealand team, he said, had spent a lot of time together this season, bagging a third successive Rugby Championship and losing only once, by two points to South Africa in a ‘dead rubber’ after having already been crowned champions of that tournament that also involves Argentina and Australia.

“We look at all the GPS numbers (measuring distance covered in games) and they’re probably used to playing at that intensity, right at the very edge,” Gatland said of the All Blacks.

“Sometimes our players are coming to us with not quite the same numbers so we have to try to replicate that at training.”

Looking ahead to Saturday’s match against the Springboks, Gatland said he had talked with his players as a first step to “make sure we’re capable of putting South Africa under the same sort of pressure and playing for the full 80 minutes and getting the win”.