There are detectable elements of concern, sadness, frustration and disbelief in Ian Foster’s voice as he makes his plea to New Zealand Rugby (NZR) not to disrupt the All Blacks in World Cup year by beginning the hunt for the next coach in March.
What’s not detectable is any hintof self-pity. Foster, who has been told that the NZR board want to have their 2024 All Blacks coaching group contracted by April, has decided to speak to the Herald about his employer’s decision because he genuinely feels it’s one which carries a high risk of unsettling players and management, and won’t benefit the team’s ability to perform.
Self-preservation is not on his agenda. His motivation for speaking out now is not because he believes an early appointment process is the wrong thing for him but is the wrong move for the team, and he has branded it “unnecessary”, saying that his employer should “let the needs of the team outweigh the needs of a few”.
“For the last couple of months I have been watching this discussion about the All Blacks coaching process play out publicly,” Foster says.
“The job that I currently hold and have currently been backed by this board to do through to the World Cup.
“And I have sat back and looked at a whole lot of views that have been put out there. Some have been frustrating to hear and a particular frustration is that there seems to be a focus on setting timetables based on what some preferred candidates feel is right for them versus potentially what is right for this All Blacks team.
“We have got players pushing to be in the right shape, and then to say to some of these people - in April/May - maybe time is up, for some that will be okay and for others it might not, but that is the gamble.
“I think you weigh up the pros and cons of that and I think it is unnecessary.
“Those conversations are best had after a World Cup when everyone is clear and we have the latest data and we know where the team is at and then the board and everyone can make the decision with all the data on the table.
“In the meantime we have got a management team and a coaching group that is fully committed to one goal, which is the World Cup and not trying to position themselves into where they fit in next year’s regime.”
Ian Foster wants the All Blacks to be fully focused on the World Cup. Photo / Photosport
His reference to timetables that suit preferred candidates, suggests that he feels that NZR fear that if they wait to begin the process until after the World Cup, they will lose Scott Robertson and Jamie Joseph to other jobs.
But while that may have been a valid fear in November last year, most of the top-tier nations have now made long-term coaching appointments and neither Robertson nor Joseph seemingly have any genuine offers to which they would be willing to commit to ahead of the World Cup.
What Foster fears is that those not ingrained in the high-performance world will not understand the depth of impact an early re-appointment process will have.
“Going [appointing the next coach] pre- or post- [World Cup] has very little to do with my job, but it has everything to do with the whole environment and the months we are going to spend talking about who is in and who is out of the next regime. That impacts on time with which I think we have better things to do.”
Sending Foster to a World Cup as the coach his employer didn’t want would also provide rivals with an easy means to belittle the All Blacks in the media.
“I believe we have a lot of strength in this group and we can overcome that,” says Foster.
“But for me, it is an unnecessary burden that you put on your own shoulders that we don’t need. Why give a sucker a chance. There is no need to do that. For me it is quite simple, let us prepare 100 per cent for this World Cup.”
Foster’s point is essentially that NZR, having backed him to stay in the role through to the World Cup, have an opportunity to fully support him and the team by delaying the appointment process until after the World Cup, knowing that Robertson and Joseph - and possibly others - will still be available.
And that’s a scenario - going head-to-head with the best coaches New Zealand has - that he would relish.
“My job is to focus on what is right for the team. I love this job and I have got a highly motivated coaching group and management team that are working hard, doing everything we can to make this country proud in France,” Foster said.
“That is our goal. We know we have to earn everyone’s respect. And we want to do that - bring the World Cup home - and if we do, I want to be able to stand up, and I’d like the opportunity to say that maybe I would like to have another crack at this job.”
