How long, given that the Blues have won only once in their opening five games and face the Chiefs in Hamilton next, before yet another coaching era is characterised as a failure and the drums start beating for change?
But the cycle of hiring and firing the coach hasn't fixed the endemic problem of poor skill execution, limited understanding of gameplans and even less ability to execute them.
The narrative is not a fair reflection of what has plagued the club in the last decade because the players haven't always been sent down the wrong tactical path by an errant coaching staff.
They can't endlessly be portrayed as victims of poor coaching when so many of the most basic elements of the game are beyond them.
It should be dawning on those whose default position has been to call for the coach's head whenever the losses mount that significant numbers of players in the Blues squad have an imbalance between their physical gifts and mental fortitude.
There may well be a stack of talent in the squad but how much of it is coachable? How many players simply don't know how to be responsible for their performance or how to learn from their mistakes?
When the final whistle blew at Eden Park last week to signal the Blues had lost 63-40 to the Sharks, a somewhat gaunt and ashen-faced Umaga looked to the heavens, his face betraying a mix of frustration and disappointment but also an element of bewilderment that once again, despite the hours of training, there were players across the team who had gone missing.
The Blues had kicked poorly, compounded matters by lacking urgency and cohesion in their chasing and they slipped off 23 per cent of their one-on-one tackles.
The issue of personal responsibility was forefront in his mind and yet such is the convention of not publicly throwing players under the bus, Umaga was stuck in his own tormented, silent world of knowing he'd be blamed yet the real issue was that a number of individuals failed to meet the required levels of professionalism in regard to their preparation and attitude.
High performance is a collaborative place where coaches have a responsibility to build effective gameplans and embed a culture of excellence.
Players have to drive their motivation and personal standards so they are able to apply themselves to deliver what has been asked.
Umaga and his coaching team are clearly not without fault, yet just as evident is that in the last couple of weeks, the majority of blame for the poor performances sits with the players. Nothing signals that more than their concession of 63 points at home last weekend.
Everyone in the top flight talks about defence being driven by desire and with the Blues review confirming the problems against the Sharks were not related to the system then inevitably the attitude of various individuals has to be scrutinised.
"We look at ourselves just as hard as coaches to make sure we are delivering on all the things we need to be doing," said Umaga. "Are we doing all we can to educate the players about what we need from them?
"They have got to make sure they are not just listening to it, but taking it on board to make sure that when it comes to the weekend, it counts. The players have had a good look at themselves but we are all in this together.
"The feedback from the players is that they are getting it and now they just have to execute."
So, just as the coaches can't be blamed for all the Blues' ills, nor can they be expected to fix them all and this flawed notion that it is Umaga's responsibility this week to motivate his players and inspire them to give more against the Chiefs than they did against the Sharks was rejected by stand-in captain James Parsons.
He's a veteran of many a failed Blues' campaign and has lived through some of the worst moments of their recent past, which is why he stressed that a turnaround in fortunes can't be led by one man alone and the onus is on the players to take more ownership of their performance this week.
"I'd like to think that is the way we prepare every week," said Parsons. "That is the way we have prepared and it is not like we have prepared in past weeks not to have that. But it is clear we didn't get that right last week.
"It is about making sure we are in this together. It is not just one man's responsibility. We are all grown men here and we all have a job to do and it is about owning that individually. He [Umaga] can't go out there and play for us and at the same time we can't plan the week so it is about us coming together to do the job."
