'There is confusion': Ian Foster on the problem areas in Super Rugby for the All Blacks
Now former All Blacks coach Ian Foster has weighed in on the state of Super Rugby Pacific and its ability to prepare New Zealand players for the international level.
The All Blacks were able to make it to another Rugby World Cup final despite challenging results against South Africa, Argentina, France and Ireland over the years leading into the event.
The international game has become more competitive than ever placing more emphasis on Super Rugby to produce international-quality players.
Foster said all is not lost with Super Rugby but that it requires a “massive” amount of attention to restore its status.
“I think it can be,” Foster said on The Platform NZ when asked if Super Rugby prepares players for international rugby.
“The Super Rugby competition needs a massive amount of attention.
“It’s critical to the All Blacks, that we have strong rugby clubs. I think we have.”
The coach explained that the critical area in need of change is player development, which has been identified as an ongoing issue in New Zealand’s governance review.
The issue is who is best placed to deliver that between Super Rugby clubs and provincial unions, who have invested heavily in player development with funding from NZR.
Foster identified the U20 level and below as an area that “hasn’t been nailed” for some time with a state of confusion taking hold.
The results at the World U20 Championships for New Zealand haven’t been great for some years, with the last championship title coming in 2017.
“The only way to keep developing those clubs is to fine tune our development systems from underneath that,” he said.
“There is confusion in that area about how we develop our next players.
“We are still stringing that out at U20 age group, where we haven’t nailed that for a decent amount of time.
“That’s our development programme. It’s not all about the U20 team as such, but the programme underneath that gets players to that point.
“That’s critical that we find a way through in that area.”
The other area that Foster highlighted as an issue is the diversity of playing styles since teams from South Africa, Japan and Argentina have disbanded or gone elsewhere.
He revealed that it took the All Blacks a couple of years to get used to playing different styles after the 2020 and 2021 seasons which saw a lot of internal rugby in New Zealand.
The All Blacks were shocked by Argentina in 2020 and 2022 whilst ended up losing to South Africa at least once every year from 2021. When they played Japan in late 2022 there was only seven points between the two sides.
Super Rugby Pacific added new teams in the Fijian Drua and Moana Pasifika but the absence of a wide variety of styles is being felt.
“We’ve got to make sure that Super Rugby is a viable competition and that our players are playing teams with a diverse way of playing,” he said.
“Certainly we narrowed down during Covid, we ended up playing ourselves.
“I think it took a bit to recover from that in 2022 and 2023 at international level and start to get used to playing different styles of rugby again.
“The more we do that the better.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Well if Parling is an Australian citizen then I suppose that’s OK. It’s more than can be said for The Hobbit in Absentia. I’m guessing Jordan Useless won’t be getting a call up to the Wallabies then because the Melbourne Rebels lineout coached by Parling has been a complete disaster. Parling had better prove himself or it’s out. He’ll be flattered by having one of the best lineout operators in world rugby in Rodda hopefully. If Parling can teach the Wallabies one thing it would be to also teach Australian players to make a serious effort on charge downs. Only Frost and Rodda make an effort. The rest are half hearted and lazy, bar Harry Wilson’s effort last week. There are lots of big missed opportunities.
27 Go to commentsGreat read thanks and glad he’s committed to Aus rugby! The comment from the no 8 saying he’s never done lineouts before doesn’t surprise me. There often isn’t the same upbringing with rugby here as there is in nz and parts of Europe. Seems like he’s doing a great job at the Rebels
27 Go to commentsScott Barrett. End of story.
1 Go to commentsDu Plessis Kirifi will not be selected by the All Blacks. He is nowhere near 6’0” tall. He looks good in Super Rugby in wide open , fast pace rugby. That is not Test rugby. He would be rag dolled by South Africa, Ireland, France, and England.
7 Go to commentsIt’s Razor so Blackadder and Grace for starters. Although on second thoughts K Read looked in great shape on TV the other day.
33 Go to commentsGreat piece Nick, plenty to chew on. Loved this ‘biases’ line from Geoff, shows he is a thinker - “If you asked me for a shortlist of coaches who appealed to my biases, he would be on it.” I think Schmidt is towing a similar line to Rennie in regards to OS players, he is publicly saying he prefers local talent, but almost certainly will be fighting to have the likes of skelton in the team. Interesting to hear the backroom on the rebels and what a cockup that is, just when you think RA admin has hit rock bottom it digs deeper. Other bit that caught my eye was his skills focus on things like passing from 7s at the base of the lineout, great little details. but also scary that a SR level 8 didn’t know how to operate within a lineout - telling!
27 Go to commentsThoroughly enjoyed this thanks Nick. ‘The lineout starts on the ground…’ wish I’d thought of that line when discussing Will’s place in the Wallabies.
27 Go to commentsShannon Frizell’s second year is optional is how I heard it. Given nothing has been confirmed yet it gets more and more likely he signs to return next year. Cant wait to see Finau doing more work on Internal players.
33 Go to commentsBlindside flankers should be hard hitting defenders, good lineout jumper with height, and a hard worker who hits and cleans rucks. If he can be a destructive ball carrier it’s a bonus but not a necessity. Samipeni Fineau and Cullen Grace are excellent at those core skills and my choice at blindside. Brad Shields is dismissed because he is 33 but not sure why that should be a consideration for this season. Shields too does these core roles well. Just don’t pick an 8 and shift him to 6 like the wingers on The Breakdown suggest, as if 6 and 8 are interchangeable. They are not. An 8 is first and foremost a dynamic ball carrier, not necessarily a destructive defender as a 6 should be. Devon Flanders and Akira Ioane are #8 s forced to play blindside because their teams have better options at 8 than them. Do not pick them at blindside
33 Go to commentsSaints obviously didn’t get the memo, or needed an ego boost?
1 Go to commentsReturning to the Chiefs would be another good change that could only put him into a better position to succeed in black
7 Go to commentsSimply outrageous and demonstrably false to say Finau’s tackle on Lynagh was “2 seconds late” In reality it was probably 0.5 seconds after he passed the ball. If you carry the ball at speed to within 5m of the defensive line you can expect to get tackled. Finau could have pulled out of it and not absolutely flattened him for sure, but there was going to be contact either way. He seems like a high risk selection at the moment, but there is no one else like him in NZ at the moment. His big tackles make the highlight reels but he is also a great athlete, very fast for such a big man, spent most of his days at lock so also very strong in the line out.
33 Go to commentsYes, Finau looks like the best option. Blackadder is not big enough for an international 6 - he should join the queue at 7. Frizzell had the power and heft and line-out height to play lock, so maybe that is where the ABs should be looking, not at a 7 who’s not big enough for 6, but at a lock who might have the agility to play 6, like Scott Barrett, or… Natai Ah Kuoi, who absolutely fits that bill, but seldom gets to play 6 because the Chiefs have so many loosies.
33 Go to commentsPaul Quinn was a National MP.
7 Go to commentsNo need to worry about losers’ mentality hysteria from Australia. Finau has all the attributes, I don't recall a high or no arms tackle from him, and his timing has been controlled very well since the round 3 Lynagh tackle. It's an easy decision for Razor, the only question is who should back him up from the bench. He can't be overworked like Squire was in his first full season.
33 Go to comments“Reds coach Les Kiss saying later: “I think every player has the right to feel safe.” Maybe Rugby is the wrong sport for people who want to feel safe..?
33 Go to commentsNot sure what the context was, but the highlights showed one scrum against Aussie where the baby Blacks were going backwards at a pace. The pack has been the issue since 2017, so they might be in for another reality check soon. This tournament should really have been two rounds, would have learned a lot more.
1 Go to commentsPeter Lakai has a ‘lot of size’? Since when? To Kirifi maybe. I think Laidlaw clearly saw he’s too small for 6 or 8, so plonked him at 7. Has potential to be Ardies understudy in black for 7.
7 Go to commentsDalton for skipper?
16 Go to commentsOh he's ‘Irish qualified’ isn't that convenient. If Ireland get any more Kiwis (and Aussie) in their backline they might need to run out in green and black kit soon. How is the supposed best rugby system in the world in need of trawling for journeyman Kiwi players?
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