Ian Foster and Sam Cane will continue as coach and captain of the All Blacks. Photo / Photosport
Ian Foster and Sam Cane will continue as coach and captain of the All Blacks. Photo / Photosport
OPINION:
Phil Gifford lists six talking points from a turbulent week in rugby.
Is this the final decision on the coach?
My money, as it was last week, is on Ian Foster and his coaching team taking the All Blacks to the World Cup in France next year.
The winat Ellis Park was pivotal. New Zealand Rugby eventually stayed true to their conservative DNA, but their public dithering must have put extra pressure on Foster. Now it would take an unprecedented run of bad results for NZR to have a change of heart.
Hopefully not cast adrift. He is by a long way the most successful Super Rugby coach there's ever been, from any country. The current mantra is that you have to either coach overseas, or have been an All Black assistant coach, to take over the All Blacks.
Robertson has been an assistant coach, but it was a long time ago, for Canterbury in the NPC for five seasons to 2012.
So exactly where, after another season with the Crusaders next year, he might fit with NZR in any role other than as a head coach is hard to see.
But if NZR don't make every effort to somehow persuade him he's not written off by them, it'd be a mistake as stupid as the decision made last century to force out an undefeated All Black coach, Fred Allen, because he, like Robertson, didn't easily fit into a conventional mould.
Ian Foster and Aaron Smith after beating the Springboks. Photo / Photosport
In politics it's the economy. In rugby it's the forwards
"We didn't need to dominate South Africa in the forwards," a former All Black veteran said to me during the week. "But we needed parity. With that we've got the talent in the backs to beat them."
Without going too Lego "everything is awesome" on it, you could reasonably expect that the step up the All Black pack took in Johannesburg wasn't a one-off. The combination of the technical skills of new assistant Jason Ryan, and the introduction of dynamic newcomers in Ethan de Groot and Samisoni Taukei'aho, are pointers to long-term improvements. With the base consolidated there's reason to be optimistic that the tests with the Pumas and the Wallabies will be a pleasure to watch, not something to grimly endure.
So can the All Blacks win the World Cup?
Nothing at knockout tournament like the Cup is ever guaranteed. In 1995 the All Blacks were the form team by the length of State Highway 1, but a superhuman effort by the Springboks, and a rampant stomach bug, tripped them up in the final. In Japan in 2019 the All Blacks confidently disposed of South Africa 23-13 in pool play, but the losing Springboks rebounded to win the whole thing.
So as tough as New Zealand's draw in France looks, with France first up in pool play, and then facing either South Africa or Ireland in a quarter-final, if there's development from how they played last weekend it'd be foolish to write them off.
The All Blacks celebrate after beating the Springboks. Photo / Photosport
Was it extraordinary that players spoke up?
It was unusual but not unique for senior players to publically support Foster, as they did after the win at Ellis Park. Sam Whitelock, as a leading Crusader, was probably the most influential.
John Kirwan said he hoped John Hart would be appointed coach after a disappointing 1991 World Cup. It seemed a foolhardy move when Laurie Mains got the position. But in fairness to Mains, Kirwan played three more seasons of test rugby through to 1994 with Mains as coach. In the 2022 All Blacks, there's now no downside for volunteering, as apparently 10 of them did, to front the media in Johannesburg to speak up for Foster.
A delight, and also a warning
The terrific spring in the step of Wayne Smith, now well settled in as coach of the Black Ferns, is a reflection of the character, enthusiasm, and range of life skills amongst his players.
There's a joy in the attitude of the Ferns, which springs from the fact they aren't full-time players, but have rich and varied lives away from the game. Given how important women's rugby is to the survival of the sport here, maintaining that passionate approach as the women's game edges towards professionalism should be considered an essential challenge for NZR officials.
