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Opinion
I have waited a respectful period since full time in the Dublin drubbing before approaching the keyboard with both care and trepidation, because I have something really unpleasant to say.
Firstly, congratulations to Ireland and lack of reference to their performance hereafter is not a lack of respect for that effort, this is simply all about the current All Blacks and their environment.
Something is rotten in the State of Darkness, and if we are honest, it doesn’t take too much digging to expose. It’s been festering away for years, it manifested in its worst form with the loss in Chicago and has been raising its ugly head again and again since.
Somewhere deep in the heart of this coaching group and squad of players is a belief that they can run and outscore anyone, no matter the circumstances, no matter what the opposition bring.
It’s misguided, it’s entitled and it’s just downright wrong. We don’t need to follow the years old rules of earning the right to play, we are different.
Some may remember I wrote a piece saying that coach Ian Foster should not view himself as a continuity appointment, he needed to grab what was a pretty large nettle and make this team his own.
But he has not. Not only has this side continued with the same lack of respect for the gain-line and setting a platform that we saw in the latter Hansen years, sadly he has almost doubled down on the recent past in both in tactics and personnel.
The selection of Jerome Kaino at lock for that now infamous Chicago outing was for me the beginning of this belief that no matter what, our way will be enough to triumph no matter what the opposition bring. This gave the world a foot in the door that and many have now pushed their way through.
The move to a dual playmaker system about five minutes before the start of the 2019 Rugby World Cup is a further example, rather than address the core issues that were facing the side at the time, let’s run with a system that got a single outing before the cup started.
And as if to reinforce this line of thinking, the side lining of Sam Cane, Ryan Crotty and Ben Smith before that fateful semi-final when we knew England would be bringing their best shock and awe tactics, was fatally misguided. Owen Franks of course was watching from home.
We have also devalued the role of the tight five to a level where the setting of base to build our game on has just gone. They need to be prioritised to get this show back on the road.
The ratio of players that set platforms, to those that need platforms to play off had thus been broken and it hasn’t been repaired since.
How else can you explain the selection of Ardie Savea and Akira Ioane in the same loose forward trio against a Springbok side who are going to go hard at the ball all day.
It was a horrible decision, another based in ‘we will outrun/outscore you’ theory and it was horribly and predictably exposed for the folly that it was.
And while we are on the topic of the South Africa games, who turns down 15 points in kicks at goal across two Test matches versus the World Cup holders when your lineout is misfiring – where do you buy that kind of delusional attitude?
Let’s ignore the simple things, let’s ignore the foundations of the games, we know better.
Now, say for a moment that the above aren’t the ramblings of just another disgruntled All Black supporter. How does one go about the repair? First some honest discussions need to be had in the coaching team and senior leadership group and then it’s time to get seriously ruthless.
Famed business writer Barry Gibbons observes that if you have a wounded soldier in the corporate platoon, you need to cut them and cut quickly or else you endanger the rest of the group.
By tolerating those that fall below the required New Zealand Rugby international standard you are setting a culture that says that this level of performance will be tolerated and the wider group doesn’t respond to higher levels.
(Photo by Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images)
In a rugby context is it scapegoating, is it overly harsh, well maybe, but if you are going to go for a major culture and performance reset then a few things are going to have to break and some nasty calls will need to be made.
In the opening cull I would include, TJP, Damian McKenzie, Akira Ioane and Patrick Tuipolutu. Too many fails, always the same thing and the tolerance is over. We aren’t seeing the required levels of performance in your core roles– off you go.
Positionally, Reiko Ioane needs to be left to be the world-class winger he can be, and ALB gets one shirt of either 12 or 13, but the flip flopping stops right now.
If we have an issue at 12 find a fix , if we don’t have guys we trust to play 9 when Aaron Smith isn’t available, then get about repairing it, but going back to the failings of the past is not the solution.
There would be serious and public kicks in the bits for sacred cows Beauden Barret and Ardie Savea too. Barrett’s grubber kick into the legs of the opposition in the early stages of Saturday was my last straw, and Savea’s ability to go missing when it gets tough is a repeat action.
If anyone can find me a Test where our number eight had the lowest tackle count from the entire starting forward pack in a Test against top tier opposition (and it wasn’t even close) I will be happy to listen to a counter argument.
Tolerance leads to repetition and not in a good way.
The worst thing about this attitude is that is contagious, and we are right on the cusp of producing a next generation of footballers who are being imbued with this awful attitude.
Exhibit A being the performance of Braden Ennor, Quinn Tupea, Josh Lord and Tupou Vaii versus Italy. Loose, error prone and individualist when surely a tighter collective approach is what we should be seeing from our emerging players.
This named list is a seriously good group of young players and I worry that we are about to hand on a baton to the next generation which will be genuinely irreversible.
Let me tell you, this wasn’t easy to write, and I take no pleasure from my observations – which may be complete nonsense after all. But something neither looks nor smells right with this current group and surely this discussion at least needs to be had.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.