Wayne Smith is not counting on Lote Tuqiri's sacking to work in New Zealand's favour come kick-off at Eden Park on Saturday.

Tuqiri was dismissed earlier this month, for what is believed to be a breach of team protocol, which has resulted in the wing taking the Australian Rugby Union and New South Wales Rugby Union to the NSW Supreme Court.

The fall-out from the former rugby league star's dismissal has been the main talking point in Australia in the build-up to the first Bledisloe Cup and Tri-Nations clash of the year.

Wallabies skipper Stirling Mortlock said the players wanted "clarity" on the issue and Australian Rugby Union Players' Association boss Tony Dempsey declared an "iron curtain" had descended on the relationship between the players and senior management of the ARU.

Smith however, believes the turmoil will be forgotten once the players step on to the pitch, citing the wrangle between the New Zealand Rugby Union and their players regarding bonuses prior to the 2003 World Cup as an example of how a team can react.

He said: "In the midst of that they won by 50 points in South Africa and 40-odd in Aussie. That's an example of how it can sometimes tighten a group."

Australia head across the Tasman on Wednesday with what coach Robbie Deans described as the "strongest combination available" for the showdown at a ground where the Wallabies have not won since 1986.

Smith, the All Blacks attack coach, is expecting a more complete Wallabies outfit this year with Deans having had 12 months to mould his players compared to the same time last year where the former Crusaders coach had been in the job only a matter of weeks.

"It's just a natural progression where you've got young players and a new coach," said Smith.

"They've got some uniformity of selection.

"They have got their key players and have had them for all the season so far. You would expect them to make progress.

"They would also have learned from last year here (where they lost 39-10). They are going to be difficult opposition."

Last year's fixtures between the two teams were dominated by Graham Henry's controversial reappointment as All Blacks head coach ahead of Deans and the latter's subsequent shift across the Tasman.

That furore has died down somewhat now while the "him against us" mentality has also disappeared and it is clear there remains plenty of respect for Deans.

"He has proven he is a great coach. He will just be applying his skills in a new team without the rah-rah this year of being the new boy in the media," Smith said.

"He is a good coach. He is a good moulder of teams.

"Clearly you can see his influence. They've brought in some new players. They're a young team. They have had continuity of selection and haven't had a lot of injuries. He is making progress."