All Blacks assistant coach Tony Gilbert admits that the 46-40 defeat at the hands of the Springboks at Ellis Park last year is still a sore point in the Kiwi camp.

And he says that devastating defeat will add steel to the All Blacks mental preparation for Saturday's Tri-Nations pipe opener against South Africa at Newlands in Cape Town. "It's still a sore point with the All Blacks - of course it is. No international side likes to lose, least of all the All Blacks.

"We obviously won't be going into the game with that in mind, but those little things will add steel to our preparation," he said.

Gilbert expects a very intense game on Saturday and says the Newlands Test could rival the series decider between the Wallabies and Lions in Sydney. "It is capable of being a very intense match. Both these sides played France and both struggled a little bit at times with the French game and their style of playing rugby.

"But if we are going to operate well in the Tri-Nations and go forward, we've got to lift the intensity. How high it gets, will depend on the day, but the Lions and Australia game was a very intense game, which showed just how passionate they were to win. I believe that must-win situation is part of this game as well."

He agreed that a defeat would be a huge setback to the losers' campaign as well as team morale. "That is very much the case. It's at that stage of the season where the game is a must-win one for both sides."

The All Blacks need to lift their levels of concentration if they want to pull this one off, warned Gilbert. He says unforced errors cost the All Blacks points in their warm-up games.

"Our lack of accuracy at times cost us tries and it cost us attacking situations that we should have finished off."

He added that excellent refereeing in the series between Australia and the Lions contributed to the intensity and the quality of the three Tests. "I think the refereeing in the Australia and Lions games was pretty good. They allowed the players to get on with the game.

"We would be looking for that, as would the Springboks. The other tangible is the weather. If the weather is difficult it is the side that really concentrates most on the accuracy of its work that will come away with a win."

Gilbert said the All Blacks don't know much about new Springbok centre Marius Joubert. "But if he's playing in the Springbok jersey he must be pretty good," the veteran coach added.

And they have no qualms about playing against Cobus Visagie, who makes his return to the international stage after a successful appeal against a drug-related ban. Visagie will bolster the Springbok tight five, said Gilbert.

"He is a very good scrummager and of course it will improve the scrummaging of their front five. We're expecting them to perform pretty strongly."

The International Rugby Board is still investigating the merits of Visagie's case, but that's of no concern to the All Blacks, said Gilbert. "We are a team, we are players and we just have to get on with the job. If he is playing in the jersey, then he is playing in the jersey. Whatever else is in the background and has nothing to do with us."