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LONDON - Former New Zealand rugby league coach Brian McClennan has backed the Kiwis to bounce back from their demoralising defeats by Australia and Great Britain.
The Kiwis have lost each of their three games since McClennan stepped down, including a humiliating 58-0 defeat by the Kangaroos in Wellington and a 44-0 hammering by the British last weekend.
Having won the first test 20-14, that sealed a series victory for the British with Sunday's (NZT) final test in Wigan still to play.
But McClennan, officially unveiled as the new Leeds Rhinos coach today, believed the Kiwis will regroup after injuries forced new coach Gary Kemble to name an inexperienced squad.
"There's peaks and valleys in sport," he said.
"You get injuries, and that happens in sport.
"It can be cruel at times but that's part of the business.
"You're always trying to find ways to improve and the Kiwi team will do that."
McClennan brought a successful spell as Kiwis coach to an end in July when he signed a two-year contract with English Super League side Leeds.
The 45-year-old took over from Daniel Anderson in 2005 and guided the Kiwis to Tri-Nations glory later that year before suffering a golden-point defeat in the 2006 final.
Although McClennan treasures his time with the Kiwis, he was reluctant to elaborate on how they might overcome their current plight.
"I'm extremely proud to have been a part of the Kiwis in 2005 and 2006," he said.
"Through that period, we enjoyed some success together and I made life-long friends.
"I'll always be connected to the Kiwis and I'll be down there supporting them at Wigan.
"I was at Hull last weekend but I wasn't watching it from a Kiwis perspective.
"Once I signed on as Leeds coach, all I've concentrated on is Leeds.
"I set up a little office at home and I've been working away in there like a little hermit."
McClennan takes over from Australian Tony Smith, who left Leeds to become fulltime Great Britain coach after their grand final win over St Helens last month.
Leeds won two championships in Smith's four years in charge, and despite this being the first time he has coached a professional club, McClennan is confident he can replicate that success.
"I can see where people could be concerned with that, and there was concern when I was named as Kiwi coach," he said.
"People said I had no experience but I've been coaching for around 18 years and coaching is about dealing with people.
"The other thing that gives me a lot of confidence is that when you're in a Tri-Nations campaign, you're together for seven or eight weeks, which is a quarter of a season anyway, and I don't think there's much harder job than getting a team ready to play Australia in the final."
McClennan admitted he had his heart set on the Leeds job after travelling to England for the 2004 Tri-Nations as assistant to Anderson.
"We trained down at Kirkstall (Leeds' training base) and I've been watching the English game, and I said to myself 'if there's one club to get, I'd love to get Leeds'," he said.
"I'm very grateful to get this opportunity.
"Over the last four years the club have done more than win two premierships and a World Club Challenge.
"The beauty of Leeds is that they've set an infrastructure of quality through the club.
"The senior and junior academy teams also won their grand finals and that's what builds a club."
- NZPA
