All Blacks assistant coach Joe Schmidt during a squad training. Photo / Photosport
All Blacks assistant coach Joe Schmidt during a squad training. Photo / Photosport
EXCLUSIVE
Machinations in the contest to claim the All Blacks head coaching role continue to evolve away from the public eye, with All Blacks assistant Joe Schmidt considering a move for the top job and Blues mentor Leon MacDonald emerging as a potentially pivotal swing voter.
Scott Robertson and JamieJoseph, the only known contenders for Ian Foster’s position to this point, have dominated the debate about who should be anointed the next All Blacks head coach.
Their prospective coaching teams, and whether Schmidt opts to contest the role, could yet prove telling when New Zealand Rugby appoints Foster’s 2024 successor next month.
Last week, the Herald reported Schmidt was unlikely to contest Foster’s role after being left less than impressed by the way in which New Zealand Rugby has handled the pre-World Cup appointment process.
Sources close to Schmidt have, however, since indicated he is weighing his options and may be open to reigniting the head-coaching flame.
Since stepping down from his successful seven-year tenure with Ireland in 2019 - after capturing three Six Nations titles and altering the national team’s psyche by conjuring maiden home and away victories against the All Blacks - Schmidt has expressed no desire to return in an all-consuming head-coaching capacity.
The test rugby landscape is an addictive arena, though, and the All Blacks job does not often become vacant.
Having settled back in New Zealand, and with internal support from the existing All Blacks coaching staff, Schmidt could now opt to throw his hat in the ring. He will, as always, consider responsibilities to his youngest son, Luke, who battles severe epilepsy.
Schmidt’s potential presence would change the dynamic of the expected two-candidate race to replace Foster on multiple fronts, with MacDonald’s future in particular increasingly fluid.
From an international standpoint, MacDonald has been approached about taking charge of Scotland following the World Cup, while also fielding interest to replace former England head coach Stuart Lancaster as Leo Cullen’s assistant at glamour Irish club Leinster.
Super Rugby coaches Leon MacDonald and Scott Robertson could be out the door as All Blacks decision looms. Photo / Photosport
In regards to the All Blacks, MacDonald could yet have three avenues to explore - of which Schmidt could prove most enticing.
Clearly a man in demand, MacDonald’s fifth season leading the Blues appears destined to be his last.
MacDonald and Schmidt remain closely aligned after working together for two years at the Blues. Schmidt mentored MacDonald from afar in 2020, before coming on board in a part-time assistant role last season.
Their ongoing relationship opens the door for the pair to potentially reunite with the All Blacks, should Schmidt emerge as a confirmed contender.
Schmidt also has close ties to Vern Cotter, who stepped down from leading Fiji due to personal reasons last month, with the duo guiding Bay of Plenty to the Ranfurly Shield and Clermont to their first French Top 14 crown.
With his demanding eye for detail and stash of set plays, Schmidt injected influential improvements to the All Blacks attack after Foster convinced him to replace Brad Mooar in a full-time assistant role mid-last season.
Highly regarded within New Zealand Rugby’s halls of power and experienced in the test scene, the only blots on Schmidt’s resume are two World Cup quarter-final exits with Ireland.
In 2019, when Crusaders guru Robertson first contested the All Blacks job against Foster, MacDonald was among his proposed coaching team. Ditto last year when Robertson was effectively placed on stand-by before Foster saved his tenure following the All Blacks’ upset victory at Ellis Park.
Six months on, though, and there now appears no guarantees MacDonald will side with Robertson this time around when the respective All Blacks coaching teams are put before a New Zealand Rugby appointment panel in the coming weeks.
While Robertson aggravated New Zealand Rugby bosses and the All Blacks with a press conference at the Crusaders early last month, when he confirmed the next national coach would be appointed pre-World Cup, Joseph has instead shunned the public spotlight and preferred to make savvy moves behind the scenes.
In an intriguing development, the Herald understands Joseph met MacDonald for coffee in Dunedin prior to the Blues’ round-one victory against the Highlanders two weeks ago. Joseph is also understood to have recently met former Crusaders turned All Blacks forwards coach Jason Ryan, who is Foster’s only assistant contracted beyond the World Cup.
These twists and turns - the secret squirrel positioning and politics - could be defining in determining the next All Blacks coach.
