Lima Sopoaga's assertion that the black jersey is losing some of its appeal and that more All Blacks were likely to head offshore in search of more money has been met with a measured but firm rebuttal by coach Steve Hansen.
Sopoaga, who left for England club Wasps after finishingup with the Highlanders in July, recently made his comments to an English press pack apparently eager to find cracks in the All Black machine.
They are likely to be disappointed, however, and Sopoaga's warning would probably have carried more weight had he been the All Blacks' first-choice first-five rather than a player slipping down the pecking order behind Damian McKenzie and potentially Richie Mo'unga.
New Zealand players are always likely to be paid more offshore. Warnings of an exodus of All Blacks aren't new and it's unlikely to happen while the current policy of only selecting players based here remains intact.
By definition, the overseas experience can't be found at home, and some players just want a change of scenery to go along with a boost to the bank balance. But Hansen also made the point that not all find the rugby experience in Europe or Japan or elsewhere an enjoyable one.
"We will always understand that people are going to go overseas, particularly some of the Pasifika boys who are supporting more than just themselves," Hansen said. "Do we like it? No, I don't like it when I lose guys who I think could be a real benefit to this team because my job is to make the team as strong as possible.
All Black head coach Steve Hansen. Photo / Photosport
"So I am going to try to talk them out of it if I can. But if they go then they go with our blessing and we will support them. He's over there now and he's obviously loving it and at some point he'll take over the driving of that team [Wasps] and do a good job. But I don't think there are any more going than has been and there is a lot of guys over there who think it is a grind and they report that back to the guys who are here.
"We don't have a commercial base like a lot of other places – we have got to create an environment where the players are well looked after from a player-load strategy and we are working on that with NZ Rugby and the franchises we have got, to try to prolong their careers so maybe they don't have to go overseas to get that big lump of money if they could play another four or five years here and get the same money."
Hansen was also eager to clarify his recent comments about approaching the government for financial assistance in retaining players from the clutches of offshore clubs.
"It is not about going cap in hand to the government, the whole point of making that comment, and it is interesting that everybody has jumped on it … rugby in this country is an important part of who we are and what we are and not all the money we make goes to the players.
"It goes into funding the grassroots, development and women's rugby and I don't know if you have seen the budget, but we are spending more than we have got. This is just my opinion so people can pooh-pooh it all they like, [but] the All Blacks over many years have been a great brand for New Zealand.
"You can go anywhere in the world and people may not know New Zealand but they have heard of the All Blacks.
"I think it is an opportunity to take New Zealand to the rest of the world by using that brand."
