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.
Premium
Home / Sport

Gregor Paul: Warning signs flashing that 'dumb' habits are returning for All Black hooker Dane Coles

Gregor Paul
By Gregor Paul
Rugby analyst·NZ Herald·
17 Feb, 2020 11:26 PM5 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

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

All Blacks hooker Dane Coles emotional when asked about his family during their press conference at the team's hotel in Tokyo, Japan. Photo / Mark Mitchell.

All Blacks hooker Dane Coles emotional when asked about his family during their press conference at the team's hotel in Tokyo, Japan. Photo / Mark Mitchell.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

COMMENT:

There's long been an assumption that Dane Coles didn't make it on to the All Blacks' radar in his first years as a professional because back then he didn't have the size to be an international hooker.

Coles was mobile, he was quick, he was tough and even in his first years with the Hurricanes where he mostly played off the bench behind test veteran Andrew Hore, it was obvious he had the range of skills the All Blacks wanted.

But at just 100kg, Coles looked like a twig in a game where everyone else was a branch and it was only when he built himself up to a more robust and sustainable 108kg that he became an All Blacks regular.

So the assumption was made that it was his lack of size that delayed his entry into the test fold – that he would have been picked earlier than 2012 had he been bigger in his early 20s.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

READ MORE:
• Premium - Gregor Paul: The biggest myth from All Blacks' failure
• Premium - Gregor Paul: New Zealand Rugby's latest blunder in search for ways to revive the game
• Premium - Gregor Paul: Why 2020 should be a year of hope and possibility - not doom and gloom - for New Zealand rugby
• Premium - Gregor Paul: The blatant money grab which has left New Zealand rugby in crisis

That's only half the story, though. If that. The bigger impediment was his lack of discipline – the inability to control and use his natural aggression effectively.

The selectors saw a young player with incredible potential, but also with a self-destruct button that was too prone to being pushed.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

There was so much to like, so much to be excited by but so too was there a sense that Coles didn't have the requisite self-control.

There was too much red mist in his early years. Physicality lacked definition in his mind. Was there really a difference between a well-timed tackle that drove a ball carrier behind the gainline and a bit of push and shove to get in an opponent's face after the whistle had been blown?

Discover more

All Blacks

Gregor Paul: What South Africa move means for Super Rugby

08 Feb 02:30 AM
Sport|rugby

Gregor Paul: The twisted thinking killing rugby - and the easy fix

11 Feb 12:39 AM
All Blacks

Gregor Paul: The blatant money grab which has left rugby in crisis

14 Feb 04:00 AM
Sport|rugby

Gregor Paul: Super Rugby has gone mad for innovative trend

14 Feb 11:20 PM
Hurricanes hooker Dane Coles. Photosport
Hurricanes hooker Dane Coles. Photosport

The point, as he understood it, was that both acts were designed to gain domination. Both were physical confrontations that could help assert control of the game.

It was only when Coles learned to see the difference between the two that he became an All Black. When he showed a greater degree of control with his aggression he became a better player.

And for a period between 2014 and 2016 he became a great player. Coles used his natural combativeness to dominate opponents.

He was aggressive, but disciplined. He was physical, but not wild. There was an edge to him but he recognised the difference between legal and illegal and for those three years, he was the undisputed best hooker in the world.

He's been plagued by injury since 2017 and there will be those who say that the damage he has incurred and his age will combine now to prevent him from becoming the player he was in his golden period.

Maybe, but just as his lack of size wasn't the real problem in his earlier career, the impact of injury and miles on his clock are not the roadblock to greatness now.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

A lack of discipline has resurfaced and Coles has regressed, lost sight of what constitutes effective physicality and what is ill-disciplined aggression that endangers his team.

Against the Sharks last week he was fortunate not to have been yellow carded, or even sent off, for diving into Sanele Nohamba who was on the ground at the time.

Social media can't decide whether it was cheap or reckless, but the label doesn't matter – it was ill-disciplined and a failure to impose himself in the way the All Blacks' coaching team want.

And what will be of particular concern is that there were signs last year that the old problem was resurfacing within Coles.

Against Australia at Eden Park, after the All Blacks had been hammered the week before in Perth where Scott Barrett had been red carded, the need for control and discipline was emphasised in the build-up.

Yet 10 minutes before half-time, Coles was sin-binned for a judo throw on Wallabies halfback Nic White off the ball.

"How disappointed?," said All Blacks coach Steve Hansen when asked about Coles' act. "Very. We'll deal with that behind closed doors and move on. It's a constant work-on for Colesy and it's a good reminder for him.

"You're going to get moments when he does something you'd classify as dumb."

Coles is a ferocious competitor which is an incredible quality that his teams want to harness.

He has an intensity of desire that few can match. He's never needed help to get himself mentally aroused, but he has needed help to stop himself becoming overly aroused and it would seem he needs that help now.

Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Sport

Warriors

Tuivasa-Sheck in talks to join rebel rugby league R360

Live
All Blacks

All Blacks team naming: Changes expected for third test

Herald NOW

Reporter with ring side seat at SBW-Gallen boxing bout gives his verdict on the fight

Watch

Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Sport

Tuivasa-Sheck in talks to join rebel rugby league R360
Warriors

Tuivasa-Sheck in talks to join rebel rugby league R360

Backers of the rebel R360 league have the Warriors star in their sights.

16 Jul 09:08 PM
All Blacks team naming: Changes expected for third test
Live
All Blacks

All Blacks team naming: Changes expected for third test

16 Jul 08:53 PM
Reporter with ring side seat at SBW-Gallen boxing bout gives his verdict on the fight
Herald NOW

Reporter with ring side seat at SBW-Gallen boxing bout gives his verdict on the fight

Watch
16 Jul 08:44 PM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
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