NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Sport / Rugby / All Blacks

Editorial: Near-flawless Hansen shows doubters how

NZ Herald
12 Oct, 2012 04:30 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Steve Hansen. Photo / Sarah Ivey

Steve Hansen. Photo / Sarah Ivey

Opinion
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Coach has unearthed new talent, revived veterans, invented new set-piece attacks, and reinforced All Blacks as No 1 team in the world

How wrong you can be. A year ago, this newspaper raised doubts over whether Steve Hansen should be the man to take over as head coach of the All Blacks. In an editorial written before the World Cup was won, we wondered if a coach of his irascibility and longevity under the Graham Henry reign would be the right man to take the All Blacks on anew. Suspicions at the time that he would work with failed Chiefs coach Ian Foster did not, then, encourage optimism.

It was a view that was arguably valid at the time but has been invalidated on many levels this year. Hansen has steered the team, and himself, through a near-flawless season. Backed by Foster, Brian "Aussie" McLean and selector Grant Fox, he has rapidly refreshed the All Blacks and created a style almost as impressive as Alex Wyllie's unbeaten side in the year after our previous World Cup victory in 1987.

On the field the team is unbeaten and, combining the tail-end of the Henry era and the start of Hansen's, is on the cusp of equalling the longest test-winning sequence by an All Black side. Brilliant new talent has been unearthed, veterans revived, new set-piece attacks invented, and the status as the No 1 team in the world emphatically reinforced.

Off the field, Steve Hansen has, if anything, done better. He managed the "will he stay, will he go" dilemma of Sonny Bill Williams with aplomb, not too proud to call on SBW's talents when the team had injury woes after the star player had nominally signed off from the All Blacks.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He was astute in distancing himself instantly from his predecessor's suggestion of match-fixing in the failed 2007 World Cup quarter-final loss. He declined to gloat or goad Robbie Deans over the dismal run of losses the Wallabies have suffered at All Black hands.

Through victories sound and sensational, he has maintained a public determination to improve, to put together a total display. He was correct after the Bledisloe Cup victory to judge the All Blacks' 22-0 shutout as "an inch or two" from a performance of which they could really be proud. That kind of realism, not the false humility of so many voices in professional sports, was welcome.

The New Zealand Rugby Union will be more than satisfied. Confident as its executives and board may have been, it could not have been certain that Hansen's leadership would translate seamlessly to the top job. It backed his plans and personnel, as it had for Graham Henry, and may well have provided unseen support to keep the head coach ahead of the game.

These All Blacks include two of the finest players to pull on rugby boots, vast experience, and in Richie McCaw a peerless leader. It could be argued that such a team coaches itself, but player power can go only so far. In selection, preparation, motivation, and tactics, the All Black coaching team must claim considerable plaudits.

This long season is not over. A dead rubber against Australia looms before four internationals in Europe. Something could yet stop the All Blacks from breaking the record for consecutive test wins.

No matter. A smooth handover has been made between a successful head coach and his protege. The results are already beyond expectations.

Discover more

Rugby World Cup

McCaw blasts Barnes

08 Oct 04:30 PM
Rugby World Cup

Rugby: Selector defends Wayne Barnes

09 Oct 12:25 AM
All Blacks

All Blacks: All Blacks aim for trifecta

09 Oct 04:30 PM
All Blacks

I've still got what it takes - Williams

09 Oct 04:30 PM
Save

    Share this article

Latest from All Blacks

Premium
All Blacks

Vaa'i ruled out as All Blacks commit to rotation

13 Jul 02:26 AM
Premium
Opinion

Gregor Paul: The signs the All Blacks have found identity under Razor

12 Jul 11:00 PM
All Blacks

France player ratings: Who gave the All Blacks the most trouble?

12 Jul 08:00 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from All Blacks

Premium
Vaa'i ruled out as All Blacks commit to rotation

Vaa'i ruled out as All Blacks commit to rotation

13 Jul 02:26 AM

Tupou Vaa'i suffers an injury setback as the blindside switch goes on hold for Hamilton.

Premium
Gregor Paul: The signs the All Blacks have found identity under Razor

Gregor Paul: The signs the All Blacks have found identity under Razor

12 Jul 11:00 PM
France player ratings: Who gave the All Blacks the most trouble?

France player ratings: Who gave the All Blacks the most trouble?

12 Jul 08:00 PM
'We were ruthless': Robertson, Savea's pride as All Blacks show true colours

'We were ruthless': Robertson, Savea's pride as All Blacks show true colours

12 Jul 07:00 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP