THE Wallabies have won just one of 12 Tests against the All Blacks while both five-eighth Dan Carter and openside flanker Richie McCaw have been on the field.
This underlines the great influence that Carter and McCaw wield for the All Blacks.
But inside centre Ma'a Nonu has been just as influential in the All Blacks' dominance over the Wallabies this year.
Nonu set up and scored a crucial try in the All Blacks' 19-18 win against the Wallabies in Sydney and crossed over for one of their two tries in the last five minutes of their 33-6 win in Wellington.
Big and mobile with a good passing game, Nonu has simply been a handful for the Wallabies' defence in the midfield.
How the Wallabies defend Nonu will have a big bearing on the result of the Test in Tokyo on Saturday.
A conventional defensive system will not work against Nonu unless the player marking him is just as big and strong.
Nonu will always win the physical contest at the tackle against a smaller opponent, enabling him to make a linebreak, offload the ball or present the ball back to his supports at the breakdown.
The Wallabies need to set a defensive trap for Nonu in the midfield by allowing him to run a couple of extra metres before making the tackle.
If Nonu takes the “fool's metres”, the Wallabies defenders will be able to isolate him from his supports, dispossess him at the tackle and launch a counter attack off the turnover ball.
However the Wallabies handle Nonu, they will still have to negate the influence of Carter and McCaw.
The scary thing about Carter is that he was operating at about 80 per cent capacity in the Tri Nations tournament after recovering from a knee injury, yet he was still able to exert an influence on the game.
Young openside flanker David Pocock, starting ahead of veteran George Smith, will have to harass Carter for the full eighty minutes, reducing his time and space.
If Pocock can pressure Carter relentlessly, he may be able to force chargedowns from his kicks and intercepts from his passes.
While Carter is a brilliant passer in the sense that he has an uncanny knack of finding the unmarked man, his actual passing action is not the slickest in world rugby.
Carter's passes can be slow and loopy, which gives a tall, long-armed centre such as Ryan Cross plenty of opportunity to take an intercept.
Back to full fitness, Carter's running game will be as dangerous as ever, which means Pocock will have to be on his guard in defence if the brilliant flyhalf is to be contained.
Of course, the Wallabies can reduce Carter's influence by taking away his opportunities with the ball.
McCaw's ability to win the race to the breakdown has been a key ingredient in the All Blacks' success against the Wallabies.
If Pocock cannot get to the breakdown first, he would be better off conceding the race to McCaw and then playing the man rather than the ball at the tackle contest.
The next Australian forward to the breakdown, whether it be number eight Wycliff Palu or one of the second rowers, would then attempt to dispossess McCaw.
The Wallabies may also reconsider where they direct their attack against the All Blacks.
Since Robbie Deans took over as coach last year the Wallabies have used a pendulum style of attack, swing the ball from one side of the field to the other, but too often they have failed to create momentum and have been caught behind the advantage line.
They may look to play a more direct game in attack with Palu and blindside flanker Rocky Elsom using their powerful running to give the Wallabies go forward.
The inclusion of Cross and winger Digby Ioane gives the Wallabies backline a more powerful and physical presence.
With Adam Ashley-Cooper restored to fullback, the All Blacks will probably target Ioane with the high ball, a tactic they have employed successfully against the Wallabies this year.
If Ioane is secure under the bombardment, it will give the Wallabies an opportunity to counter attack.
The Wallabies have scored most of their tries this year off setpiece ball and they will need their scrum and lineout to function well against the All Blacks.
But they have to start scoring off phase play if they are to become a more potent attacking team.
Ultimately, the Wallabies' mindset will be crucial to ending the All Blacks' dominance.
The All Blacks will be aiming for a seventh straight win against the Wallabies, who have to start believing they can win before they do.
When the All Blacks beat the Wallabies in Wellington it was the first time in five Tests that they had led the Australian at half-time. In the previous four encounters the Kiwis had run the Australians down to achieve narrow victories.
The 27-point margin in Wellington was blown out by two tries to the All Blacks in the last five minutes.
Deans accused the Wallabies of capitulating in Wellington. How well they have recovered from that humiliation will largely determine the result in Tokyo.
