“And for us as players, we’ve just got to get together and figure it out, I guess. Looking forward to what’s next, but also, yeah, love to Ray.”
The move that saw Robertson leave his post at the helm of the All Blacks came after a review into the programme at the end of last year.
Under Robertson’s charge, which began in 2024, the All Blacks had a 20-7 test record. However, they went 1-3 against South Africa, including being dealt their worst loss ever last year in Wellington, while they were also beaten at home by Argentina in 2024.
“I don’t really know too much about the review process, but we just got told it was very thorough; there was no bias in it,” Williams said. “So for me as a player, my job’s to now be back with the Crusaders and give my all to the Crusaders.”
Williams added that he wasn’t aware of any feeling in the playing group that something needed to change in the coaching set-up.
“Definitely not to my knowledge. I’m a player. I get told to run into people and tackle people as well. So whoever the coaches were and whoever they’re going to be, I have full trust in and I guess it’s my job just to buy in 100%,” he said.
“My opinion on it is we trust whoever gets the role. We back them and then we get the job done. That’s quite simple ... whoever comes in, trust them and good luck.”
Williams will return for a Crusaders team looking to back up its title-winning campaign in 2025; a season which saw a dramatic turnaround in the trajectory from 2024.
In the first season under Rob Penney, who replaced Robertson after he led the Crusaders to seven titles, the Christchurch-based side struggled for results and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2015.
In 2025, they finished the regular season second – tied with the Chiefs for best record in the competition at 11-3 – before going on to sneak past their Hamilton rivals in the grand final.
The Crusaders will begin the year with four New Zealand derbies in their first five games (Highlanders, Chiefs, Blues, Highlanders), before ending the season with four in a row (Hurricanes, Blues, Chiefs, Hurricanes).
“We’ve got a tough run this year, but, like we always say as Crusaders, we take it week by week and we’ll keep showing up,” Williams said.
“At the end of the day, you’ve still got to go out there and do it, right? So, we’ll earn every week, every day, and we’ll get after it.”
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
