All Blacks have 'proved a lot of people wrong' - Dan Carter

All Blacks legend Dan Carter credited the New Zealand side for their performance in the ongoing Rugby World Cup campaign.

New Zealand faced severe criticism for their performances last year and leading to the tournament with the board also announcing Scott Robertson to take over from Ian Foster following the showpiece event in France.

The defeat against France in the opening game of the competition added to their worries but since then they redeemed themselves winning the remaining three Pool matches and edged out Ireland in the quarter-final. Foster's men made a big statement with a 44-6 thrashing over Argentina in the semi-finals as they now face the Springboks in the final on Saturday.

Crediting New Zealand for the turnaround, Carter is hoping for them to give a perfect send-off to Foster, who was their assistant coach when the All Blacks won the 2015 Rugby World Cup.

"Before the tournament, I don't think many New Zealanders would have thought that the All Blacks would be here," Carter told RTÉ Sport's Michael Corcoran.

"But having worked with the team this year, I knew that they believed.

"They had faith in themselves. When you're in the spotlight and under a lot of public and media scrutiny, you can go one of two ways. You can believe what you're reading and hearing. Or you can galvanise and unite as a team. That's exactly what the All Blacks have done.

"It's very rare that the All Blacks go into a World Cup not as one of the favourites. And this World Cup was exactly that and they've proved a lot of people wrong.

"So, they should be really proud of what they've achieved but that doesn't mean anything unless they get the job done this weekend.

"They're playing some really accurate, clinical rugby at the right time of the tournament, so really excited to see how they go."