Ten years ago Vern Cotter and Joe Schmidt made history when they coached Bay of Plenty to the union's first - and only - successful Ranfurly Shield challenge.
Now the two analytical rugby brains are riding high, coaching European powerhouses Scotland and Ireland. Cotter, the straight-talking ex-Te Puke farmer, andSchmidt, the eloquent former Tauranga Boys' College deputy principal, were an exceptional coaching duo.
You only had to watch the Steamers train or play back then, and see the attention to detail in Cotter's forwards and the intricate backline moves orchestrated by Schmidt, to know there was something special going on.
Both men quickly gravitated to much bigger stages. After coaching the Steamers from 1999 to 2004, Cotter joined Robbie Deans at the Crusaders for two seasons. He then returned to France, where he had played for 10 years, and coached Clermont Auvergne to three Top 14 finals, finally winning the club's first title in 2009-10. This year, Cotter became Scotland's head coach. He quickly installed pride back in the jersey, revved up the forward pack, and encouraged the backline, including former Crusaders winger Sean Maitland, to have a go. Just like the way his old Bay teams did.
His Scotland team came close to beating the All Blacks for the first time in history yesterday, but up against the weakest starting All Blacks team in living memory. Schmidt joined the Blues after his Steamers heroics, initially falling foul of Carlos Spencer who did not rate his coaching credentials. But he rose above that to establish his reputation from 2004-07 before joining up with Cotter again at Clermont from 2007-10.
Irish eyes then smiled on Schmidt as he became Leinster's head coach. He won two consecutive Heineken Cup titles before taking on the daunting task of coaching Ireland in 2013. Any dissenting voices were soon quietened though. Under Schmidt, the Irish won this year's Six Nations Championships and were set for their first-ever win over the All Blacks before the game was lost in injury time in Dublin last November.
Ireland demolished South Africa 29-15 on November 8 to kick start preparations for the Rugby World Cup next year.
Cotter, 52, and Schmidt, 49, are both in their prime as rugby coaches and will undoubtedly create their own legacies with Scotland and Ireland.
