Star midfielder Sonny Bill Williams will arguably be the All Black under most scrutiny by media and fans at the Rugby World Cup. Photo / photosport.co.nz
Star midfielder Sonny Bill Williams will arguably be the All Black under most scrutiny by media and fans at the Rugby World Cup. Photo / photosport.co.nz
Having fun – and hardened All Blacks opening themselves up to being "vulnerable" by asking for help - are among tactics the team will employ to handle the white-hot pressure at the Rugby World Cup.
The All Blacks will launch their Webb Ellis Cup defence next Saturday, amid theweight of expectation from millions of All Blacks' fans.
Few New Zealanders operate in a work environment with as much public scrutiny as the All Blacks.
And six days out from the start of their campaign, assistant coach Ian Foster has given a wide-ranging insight into the All Blacks' camp on how they handle pressure; including coaches not panicking to ensure no "Calm down, Captain Mainwaring" moments, respecting the feelings of players who are dropped, and how the side are actually their own greatest critics.
"The pressure comes heavily on the team," he says. "You have to understand that that is the environment we live in, we have to acknowledge that and embrace it rather than be scared by it.
"It is about making sure that we have an environment that players are actually vulnerable enough to say, 'I am struggling with this' or 'I don't know how to do this', so you can have those hard conversations."
The All Blacks kick off their bid for back-to-back-to-back title triumphs against co-favourites the Springboks in Yokohama City.
If the All Blacks make it to the cup final in six weeks time, Foster says they will have to have triumphed not only over on-field opponents but also "a lot of speculation" and "intensity".
"All sorts of things will happen at a World Cup," he says.
All Blacks assistant coach Ian Foster, left, and head coach Steve Hansen will have plenty of big calls and pressure to handle during the Rugby World Cup. Photo / New Zealand Herald
Foster says it isn't just the players who need to be firing in the high-pressure Rugby World Cup environment - so too must the coaching and management team.
Those in off-field roles must ensure they embrace challenges, trust they "breathe" confidence.
"We put the spotlight on ourselves heavily before we ask too many questions of the players," Foster says.
In reference to the ramshackle leadership shown in the hit British comedy Dad's Army, he adds: "It is no good the old 'Calm down, Captain Mainwaring' type of thing when we are panicking ourselves."
Foster says handling pressure is just one reality of his job.
"It is a matter of embracing [it] and saying, 'I am dealing with it okay? Yep, I am, let's get going.' Or, 'Am I reacting adversely to it? Well if that is the case, do I need people around me to tell me and I will modify my behaviour?'.
"Again, it is that environment where you just expect your mate to tell you how you are going and we expect everyone to listen."
While every move of the team will be eagerly tracked, and critiqued by fans and the world's media, Foster says it is actually the All Blacks who put the highest expectations on themselves.
Some of the toughest moments he had endured in his eight-season stint as All Blacks assistant coach had been when those expectations hadn't been met.
"That is what probably hurts me the most."
As well as working on a game plan which they hope will secure a third successive World Cup win, the All Blacks coaches and selectors will also have to respect the feelings of those overlooked for action in Japan.
Foster says rugby, like other businesses, has made strides in how it treats its staff – in this case players.
The toughest of calls the All Blacks selectors made before the World Cup was to leave Owen Franks and Ngani Laumape out of the travelling 31.
The selectors will have to make more tough calls when naming matchday 23 teams for key World Cup matches.
"They are all incredibly tough situations because they involve people's feelings and people's expectations," he says.
"And the only way to deal with that is by sitting down afterwards and saying, 'This is why I did it, here are the reasons and I would like you to understand that . . . you don't have to like it, but you have to understand it.'"
Beauden Barrett was among All Blacks stars who were treated to a royal welcome after their arrival in Japan on Monday. Photo / Kyodo News via AP
Foster's own recipe to winding down when the pressure is on is maximising rare free time, including listening to music, taking time out to walk around whatever city is hosting the All Blacks, and all-importantly, enjoying mateship with others who are in camp.
"The best stress release in a lot of ways, particularly in World Cups, is with the people that you work with . . . sitting around and having a lot of fun with them."
It is also important to ensure team meetings aren't fun-free zones, he adds.
"We make sure that we want smiling people in a meeting," he says.
"We may be talking about heavy things, but it is still a game, it is still a sport. It is one thing saying you want serious athletes who put their bodies on the line, but if they are not enjoying it they struggle to do that."
