Fa’alogo Tana Umaga, coach of Moana Pasifika, is close to signing on as an assistant with the All Blacks. Photo / Photosport
New All Blacks coach Dave Rennie is expected to announce his assistant coaching group in the coming weeks. Are we going to see a full cleanout from Scott Robertson’s coaching staff or will Rennie hold on to a few of the current team?
From a few All Blacks greats to Scotland’s most capped halfback, here’s a look at Rennie’s coaching contenders.
Tana Umaga (defence)
The Herald understands Umaga is a contender to be named as one of Rennie’s assistants as a defensive coach. The All Blacks great played under Rennie in Wellington when they won the NPC title in 2000. Umaga is the current coach of Moana Pasifika, after previous stints with Counties Manukau, the Blues and Samoa, and would be a popular choice among the Pasifika contingent in the All Blacks, including possible captain Ardie Savea.
Neil Barnes (forwards)
Barnes coached alongside Rennie at the Chiefs and spent time on the international scene with Canada and Italy before assuming charge of Taranaki in the NPC. In January, he re-signed with Taranaki for the 2026 season. During his tenure in Taranaki, the team produced an unbeaten season in 2021 to claim the NPC title, followed by a second title in 2023. He’s known as a tough forwards coach with specific expertise at the lineout.
Netflix’s Six Nations: Full Contact series in 2024 featured an unfiltered version of Barnes when he was an assistant coach for Italy. Barnes’ performance — which included a stream of F-bombs — saw him being described as the “breakout star” by Ireland’s Independent.
Mike Blair (attack)
Scotland’s most capped halfback before moving into assistant coaching roles with Glasgow, Scotland, Kobe and leading Edinburgh, Blair is another candidate Rennie is expected to suggest as an alternative attacking mind.
The 44-year-old took over as head coach at Edinburgh for the 2021-22 season and saw the club reach the URC play-offs and the quarter-final stage of the EPCR Challenge Cup. However, he left the role the following season to join Rennie in Japan.
Ten games into the current season, Kobe have scored the most tries in Japan’s League One and have been in the top three of the statistic the last three seasons.
Andrew Strawbridge (skills)
The former Chiefs assistant who worked with England coach Steve Borthwick last year, could also be considered as a skills mentor but his confrontational style doesn’t gel with everyone. In 2022, when the All Blacks assistant coaches were on the verge of being fired, then head coach Ian Foster parachuted Strawbridge into his management team with a view to honing his squad’s skills.
Strawbridge remained with the All Blacks from early 2022 through to their one-point World Cup final loss to the Springboks last October. After departing with Foster and many of his wider long-serving All Blacks management, Strawbridge linked up with England for their Six Nations campaign and stayed on for the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
Ben Smith (backline skills)
The 2015 Rugby World Cup winner was quick to transition to coaching following his retirement in 2022. He’s been working as an assistant coach at both Otago and the Highlanders - as a skills/assistant coach. Smith was a great player under the high ball and would provide key intel in an area of the game which has only become more vital since his retirement.
Jason Ryan (forwards)
The first name on the assistant coaches team sheet when Scott Robertson announced his coaching team in 2023, more than a year before his first test. Ryan was the only incumbent from Ian Foster’s coaching staff, joining the All Blacks in 2022. Ryan replaced John Plumtree as All Blacks forwards coach ahead of the 2022 Rugby Championship after he was reportedly ‘hand-picked’ by the players, having had a strong relationship with Crusaders and All Blacks veterans in the squad at the time.
Scott Hansen (attack/gameplan)
Was part of Robertson’s original assistants named in April 2023, having worked together at the Crusaders. Hansen joined the Crusaders ahead of the 2020 Super Rugby season with a focus on the team’s attack strategies and game planning which he carried into the All Blacks role.
The All Blacks attack was hit and miss across the past two seasons, with Hansen working alongside Jason Holland on attack, who announced last October that he was leaving the All Blacks environment after the 2025 season.
Tamati Ellison (defence)
Robertson first appointed Ellison with the All Blacks for the 2023 as contact skills coach, having worked with him at the Crusaders. After Leon MacDonald departed the All Blacks in August 2024, Ellison was given extra responsibilities. In October 2024, he was promoted to a fulltime role. The All Blacks did concede 43 points in a record home loss to the Springboks last year as well as a heavy 33-19 loss at Twickenham. But they did hold Australia, Ireland and Scotland to 17 points or fewer in consecutive weeks.
Bryn Evans (lineouts)
The former All Blacks and Hurricanes lock joined Robertson’s staff in 2025, having worked with the Canes and Hawke’s Bay in charge of the lineouts and restarts.
“Bryn brings a skillset that I haven’t got in terms of how they call lineouts, what pictures they see,” Ryan said in 2025. ”We believe it’s a real point of difference having him and making sure our skills are dialled in and leading the way in that area."