No 'copy and paste' coach: Ian Foster opens up on public backlash after All Blacks appointment
Wednesday this week would have been a curious day for Ian Foster. Mid-morning he learned he had landed his dream job as head coach of the All Blacks, and by the time he went to bed, the life must have been half sucked out of him after his appointment was met with an endless barrage of negativity and adverse commentary.
Whatever excitement there was in the Foster household on Wednesday morning, wasn’t shared outside of it and having signed a two-year contract, the new All Blacks coach finds himself in the position of having to win approval from a cynical public who were mostly rooting for the other guy to get the job.
Foster, then, is the coach the country didn’t want. He is not the people’s choice – that was the rejected Scott Robertson and an incredibly tough job is going to be so much harder for Foster on account of not, at this stage, having the full weight of the nation behind him.
But no one could accuse Foster of starting his tenure in a state of delusion as he understands that his popularity is not sky-high.
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“It is tough when you have been in an environment as an assistant for eight years for people to get a real sense of how you are coaching,” he says.
“I understand that. Steve [Hansen] had his own style and did a magnificent job of it. He had his own flavour.
“I know opinion has been divided and I know in Scott there has been another great candidate that people have got behind. I love that. It is the passion of the game and it is great that the union had a tough choice but they have decided on me.
“I am not going to turn everyone’s opinion straight away. I have got to get in there and roll my sleeves up and I want to reassure people that I am here because I love this team and that I feel really good about the plan.
“I know what I know about the team but I also know that the team has to change.”
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Nor could anyone accuse Foster of having fanciful or flimsy notions about what he must do to bring the sceptics into his camp.
He gets that he will be judged by results, but he does also hope that in his new role, he’ll be able to give a better impression of what he is all about and win a little warmth as well as respect.
It is the curse of the assistant coach that they are forever having to hide parts of themselves. They are reading from someone else’s script: toeing someone else’s line and it is not possible to get a true read on who they really are.
Hansen proved that when he was a surly and at times prickly assistant who often alienated the media, but a humorous and engaging head coach who ended his career with a spontaneous standing ovation from fans in Tokyo.
“You can duck for cover as an assistant coach and Steve cast a pretty big shadow in that space,” says Foster.
“There were times when it was quite hard to come out from under that shadow and perhaps for people to see me for who I was. But that’s okay because my job was to do the best thing for the team.
“I know there is an incredible amount of pressure. But there is an amazing feel in that group and it is a privilege to be part of.
“You hear that word a lot but I don’t take it for granted. I had no expectation I was going to get the job. I just felt like a player and put my best foot forward, perform as best you can and then see what happens.”
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What happened was he got the job. He may not have the support of the people – or certainly not all of them – but he was unanimously endorsed by the New Zealand Rugby board who were taken with with his vision which is essentially a plan to keep the best of the previous regime, while making changes that Foster says range from tweaks to overhauls.
That combination was too much for the appointment panel to resist as they felt it gave them continuity, which appealed to their mostly conservative selves while acknowledging that the All Blacks have stayed ahead of everyone else by constantly innovating.
The detail around the specifics will emerge in the course of 2020 but Foster is conscious that having been an integral part of the All Blacks for eight years under Hansen, he doesn’t want to stomp in next year and rip everything up as if he never agreed with it.
“I haven’t come in on a platform that I am going to change everything,” he says. “I have an in-depth knowledge of what goes on in the team as I have been part of it. And I am accountable and responsible for the good stuff and bad stuff.
“If my plan was to copy and paste the formula then I shouldn’t be the next All Blacks coach. So I have gone in on and said ‘what is the core stuff that I think we are particularly strong at? What do I think is essential that we maintain? What is the stuff we have to tweak and what is the stuff we have to radically change?’
“And there are things in that radically change category that I am excited about. There are some great people involved and there is a high degree of pain.
“We are hurting and we have got to use that to fuel some change: change behaviours and change some systems. We have got to evolve some areas of our game.
“And so yep I know the pressure, but you have a clear direction and I have got to be myself. I believe in what I am doing. There are some new voices in there and we have to find a new way of doing things.”
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Foster is amped by the prospect of driving change and taking charge of the All Blacks at a time when their standing in the global game has slipped from the heights it reached in 2016.
But it’s the fact that the All Blacks are facing numerous challenges that has left him short of support. The All Blacks are minus a World Cup trophy and their number one ranking.
They also need to find a new captain and replacements for a handful of experienced veterans and for the first time in 10 years there is a genuine re-building job to be done.
And not many are sure he is the man to do it because, like he says, it’s hard to tell the influence and ability of an assistant coach, while his previous experience as a head coach at the Chiefs was not a resounding success.
But despite the odds appearing to be stacked against him, his confidence is that he can change the trajectory of the national team in the next two years is undented.
“If you look at our World Cup squad yes we have lost a few players but we actually have a higher percentage of younger players that are still there. If you go through and look at the age of a lot of our backs it is a young backline and I think the best is still to come for a lot of those players.
“So instead of being fuelled by a successful tournament and us talking about how to stop a team becoming complacent, we are now being fuelled by a disappointing result and I think we are going to have some very hungry players coming back.
“So I think between that and maybe an injection of some new players which there are always going to be, then it is an exciting time. We have got to make sure that we have an environment that harnesses that so people can play with skill and physicality and a smile on their face.”
This article first appeared on nzherald.co.nz and was republished with permission.
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Comments on RugbyPass
$950k for a Prop that isn’t fit enough to play 10 mins of rugby? Surely there is someone better to replace Big Mike with
2 Go to commentsFour Kiwis in that backline. A solid statement on the lack of invention, risk-taking and joy in the NH game; game of attrition and head- banging tedium. Longterm medical problems aplenty in the future!
1 Go to commentsGood article, I learnt quite a lot. A big sliding door moment was in the mid 00s when they rejected Steve Anderson's long term transformation and he wrote Ireland's strategy instead.
2 Go to commentsHi Dr Nick! I'm worried that I've started to enjoy watching England and have actually wanted them to win their last two games. What would you prescribe? On a more serious note, I've noticed that the standard of play in March is often better than early February. Do you think this is because of the weather or because the players have been together for longer?
10 Go to commentsMy question in all this brett is who is going to wear the consequences of these actions? Surely just getting the sack isn’t sufficient? A teenager working the till at woolies would probably get taken to court if they took $20 out of the till. You mean to tell me that someone can spend $2.6 million and get away with it? Where was it spent? What companies/people were the beneficiaries etc? How is it just being talked about as an ‘oopsie’ and we all just move on and not a matter of the court for gross negligence, fraud, take your pick…
18 Go to commentslove Manu too but England have relied on him coming back from injury for far too long and not sorted the position with someone else long term . It will be a blessing he has gone . Huge shame he was so injury prone . God speed Manu .
3 Go to commentsI agree with Ben Smith about Brett Cameron. The No. 6 position has to be a monster and a genuine lineout option, like Ollivon, Lawes (now Chessum), Du Toit, etc. The only player who fits that bill right now is Scott Barrett. A fit and fizzing Tuipolotu together with one of the young towers, Sam Darry or Josh Lord, would give Razor the freedom to play Barret at 6.
16 Go to commentsOutstanding article, Graham. Agree with all of it. And enjoy the style of writing too (particularly Grand Slap!).
2 Go to commentsI wouldn't pay a cent for that loafer. He just stands around, waiting for play to come his way. He won't make the Wallabies.
2 Go to commentsGood bit of te reo maori Nic. Or is that Niko or Nikora? On the theme of trees the Oaks v Totara. Game plan would be key. I have one but it would cost you.
10 Go to comments> Shaun Edwards’ You should not have to score 30 points to win a game, as exciting as it is. This statement was surprising to me. It is nonsensical .I guess it is a defence coach speaking. But head coach, defence and attacking coaches all work together. They are inseparable. You score more than the opposition to win. It only needs to be one score. You score whatever the game demands, whatever the opposition demand. You defend whatever it takes. The attack coach needs to be able to clock up 30pts if need be.
10 Go to commentsWho’d have thought, not having Farrell & Youngs kicking the ball at every possible opportunity and playing flat and allowing your centres to run and pass would pay off? No one could possibly have seen this coming. FML. It took a LONG time coming but at least that time has finally come. England need to find a backup to Lawrence. Freeman is the best candidate for me, I see no reason why he can't play 12. He's big, strong, fast and has great hands.
10 Go to commentsLove Manu but he's not the player he was and I imagine Bayonne have paid too much money for him.
3 Go to commentsNew Zealand have not beaten England since 2018 and even that was a pretty close shave.
1 Go to comments“a renewed focus on Scottish-qualified players” Scottish-qualified is another way of saying English. England has development more players for the Scotland national Rugby team in the last 4 years, than Scotland has.
2 Go to commentsThis sounds a lot like the old Welsh rugby proverb “Wales never lose. Other teams just score more points.”
5 Go to commentsFinally,at last, Borthwick has done what the whole of England have been crying out for. Ditch the kick chase and let the players have freedom to attack and run with the ball. It was great to see. Ford played really well and for the first time in ages was 5 yards closer to the gainline which then allowed a more attacking position . Pity it has taken 90 odd caps to do so. However, this has to continue and not be a false dawn . One issue. Marcus. With Ford having one really good game in 5 ,is he the answer long term . Smith puts bums on seats and is terrific to watch . How can you leave him out before he departs for France in disillusion . England are in danger of Simmons , Alex Goode , Cipriani , Mercer and now Smith being unable to get a selection ahead of “favourites” of the management regardless of form . Great to see England play so well .
2 Go to commentsCockerill was an abrasive player in the mould of a Georgian front rower who will have the respect of that pack. Looking forward to seeing what he can do with this exciting team, hopefully they can send a message to unions like Wales that money alone doesn't buy you wins.
2 Go to commentsI like the look of those July matches. Hopefully they'll get some good tests in November too.
2 Go to commentsThis is a poor article, essentially just trolling six nations teams
22 Go to comments