Former England coach Eddie Jones and All Blacks coach Ian Foster ahead of the test at Twickenham last year. Photo / Getty
Former England coach Eddie Jones and All Blacks coach Ian Foster ahead of the test at Twickenham last year. Photo / Getty
OPINION:
If it turns out, as everyone believes it will, that only two candidates emerge to replace Ian Foster as All Blacks coach, then serious questions will have to be asked about why the supposed best job in world rugby continues to attract so little interest.
New Zealanders, it seems,want to coach everywhere else other than in New Zealand.
There are New Zealanders in charge of Wales, Italy and Japan, and until a few months ago, there were Kiwis at the helm of Australia and Fiji.
There are also New Zealanders coaching the biggest clubs in England, France and Japan and yet the best intelligence to date suggests that Jamie Joseph and Scott Robertson are going to be the only two candidates to apply to coach the All Blacks in 2024.
This would be shocking but for the fact it is pretty much the norm when it comes to appointing All Blacks coaches.
In 2011, there were two candidates: Steve Hansen and Vern Cotter. In 2019, when the job was next contestable, there were only two candidates – Foster and Robertson - and now, despite New Zealand Rugby (NZR) breaking with precedent and opting to complete the process before the World Cup to maximise the number of applicants, once again, just two names are in the frame.
In 2011 and 2019, the timing of the process was blamed for the low level of interest, the argument being that many, if not most candidates, had already secured their next job long before NZR opened the process to start looking for the next All Blacks coach.
But having reacted to that by opting to hold the appointment process now, rather than waiting until after this year’s World Cup, and still only having two contenders, suggests the time has come to start wondering whether the problem is not timing but something else entirely.
The list of who isn’t involved is beginning to feel like it may be the bigger story as there is a weight of evidence building that NZR might be labouring under a misapprehension about the allure of the All Blacks.
Scott Robertson (left) and Jamie Joseph are the leading contenders for the vacant All Blacks coaching role. Photos / Photosport
Once the process has run its course and the new man is appointed, NZR needs to find out why so many world-class New Zealanders haven’t thrown their respective hats into the ring.
And the first person that needs to be asked is former Ireland coach and current All Blacks assistant Joe Schmidt.
He has publicly ruled himself out, releasing a statement over the weekend after speculation mounted that he may be considering applying.
Schmidt has the experience, the knowledge and says he has loved being back in the coaching fold after taking a break when he finished with Ireland in 2019.
But he doesn’t want to be the next All Blacks coach. Nor, does it appear, that Dave Rennie has any interest in being the next All Blacks coach.
He’s available, he’s got almost four years’ test experience with the Wallabies and won two Super Rugby titles with the Chiefs.
Despite the fact the Wallabies sacked him in January, there is a consensus view he was building something, having inherited a team that was low on confidence.
He reconnected the players with the jersey, acknowledged the diverse cultural backgrounds of the players, and in doing so, screamed out as a potential New Zealand coach.
But the job obviously doesn’t appeal to him, in the same way it has not grabbed the imagination of Cotter, who was suddenly dumped by Fiji last month.
Cotter has had huge success as a club coach in France and with Scotland, whom he took to the quarter-finals of the 2015 World Cup.
Pat Lam is another who has stayed well clear of the process. The former Blues coach has established himself as one of the most successful in Europe, having won silverware with Connacht and Bristol, but seemingly has no interest in coming home.
Robbie Deans has been the most successful club coach in Japan in the last decade and has a wealth of international experience.
He’s clearly not been tempted to see if all that knowledge could be put to use with the All Blacks again (Deans was an assistant coach to John Mitchell from 2001-2003), and of course, Foster himself has said he won’t be re-applying for his job - which may not be a huge surprise, but again, is just one more coach with international experience shying away from the role.
Whether the All Blacks end up with Robertson or Joseph, they will have a good coach at the helm. That’s not in doubt.
But the lack of interest the role has generated still needs to be investigated, because while the All Blacks are going to end up with a good coach regardless, there’s still no certainty given how few have applied, that they will have appointed the best.
