Rugby: Certainty aids World Cup campaign

Having the coach and captain already in place for next year is a big plus for the All Blacks.

For the first time in professional history, the All Blacks don't need to write 'England or bust' on their luggage when they head to the World Cup.

Typically, the World Cup has been a terminus. Everyone has to get off — the coach, captain, players, management ... the works — because New Zealand Rugby have not been willing to plan beyond the tournament.

Previously, no coach in All Blacks history has had a contract out of sync with the World Cup. Previously, NZR have wanted the coaching job to be contestable at the end of every tournament. No matter the record of the incumbent or how well the team performed in the cycle, the coach's fate would be determined only after the World Cup.

And with that philosophy, everyone else was stuck. The players could never be quite sure where they would stand after the tournament. There was always a risk there could be a new coach, someone who didn't rate them as highly.

Even the captain — or maybe especially the captain — couldn't be sure and the uncertainty was probably two parts motivational, three parts damaging.

Inevitably, what the uncertainty also did was invite endless speculation about who might be in the frame to take over as coach should it all go wrong.

At this stage of the last World Cup cycle, it wasn't known — although it was strongly believed — that Graham Henry would step down after the tournament. He wasn't contracted beyond 2011 and NZR's policy was that, regardless of the outcome, Henry would have to re-apply.

His assistant, Steve Hansen, had signalled by June 2011 that he would most likely be applying for the job. A few other names were bandied about and the whole business of what would happen next became a mini-sideshow.

It was an unwanted distraction and, while it didn't cripple the All Blacks' chances, it no doubt added to the pressure the squad felt. It was another factor that made them feel under siege.

It's all so different this year. Hansen will be head coach until 2017 and, while it hasn't been confirmed or formally announced, Kieran Read will be the next All Blacks captain.

Suddenly the World Cup is no longer a terminus and there is no speculation about what might happen after the tournament.

There is a sense the All Blacks can go to England, give it their best shot and know the sky won't cave in if it doesn't work out.

It's not a massive factor in the sense it will make them better prepared or less distracted than their predecessors, but it is a victory for common sense and good planning.

Hansen's record between 2012 and 2014 demanded reappointment — and not just his record. Look at how many players he has developed in his tenure. Brodie Retallick and Beauden Barrett were talented under-20 players in 2011 and are now world-class. Aaron Smith was a 10-minute bench man at the Highlanders in 2011, Julian Savea was a near-broken hopeful in 2011 when he couldn't catch or do anything right at the Hurricanes, Ben Smith has been nurtured from the periphery to World Rugby's Player of the Year shortlist and Liam Messam has finally been converted from superb athlete to world-class player.

With contractual certainty, Hansen has been able to tell Read he will be captain next year, he has persuaded Grant Fox to stay on as a selector for another two years and plans have been put in place to deal with the difficulty of next year with many All Blacks likely to be committing to play sevens at the Olympics.

None of this would have been wise or right had there been ambiguity about the All Blacks' record under Hansen. But, as the Blues were at pains to stress last week, rugby is a results business and the All Blacks have delivered those under Hansen.