Scott Robertson weighs in on the Johnny Sexton drama

All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson is expecting some hostility when his team land in Europe for their Northern Tour, but isn’t concerned about any repercussions of Johnny Sexton and Rieko Ioane’s recent spat.

Sexton made headlines recently when a snippet from his autobiography ‘Obsession’ was released and revealed the former Ireland star’s take on how things played out following the final whistle of the Rugby World Cup quarter-final his side lost to New Zealand.

In alignment with what was rumoured to have been said at the time, Sexton retold the story by quoting Ioane: “Don’t miss your flight tomorrow. Enjoy your retirement, you c***.”

Sexton then wrote: “So much for the All Blacks’ famous ‘no d***heads’ policy. So much for their humility. I walk after Ioane and call him a fake-humble f*****.

“It doesn’t look great, me having a go at one of them just after we’ve lost. But I can’t be expected to ignore that.”

Ioane responded with a cryptic Instagram story featuring an image of the two from the match, the song ‘Zombie’ by The Cranberries and two emojis: a Joker card and a house.

Appearing on a recent podcast, Sexton said he never meant to spark any big drama and clarified he doesn’t think badly of Ioane, wanting to avoid a ‘tit for tat’, prolonging the saga.

Head-to-Head

Last 5 Meetings

Wins

2

Draws

0

Wins

3

Average Points scored

21

22

First try wins

60%

Home team wins

0%

However, with a rematch between the two sides slated for November eighth, excitement from across the rugby world has been building, excitement only amplified by the idea of bad blood.

After a week of radio silence on the story, Scott Robertson stepped in front of the media to discuss the upcoming tour. The coach was asked jokingly if he’d received any fan mail from Sexton.

“Not personally,” Robertson replied with a grin.

“Look, it’s a bit of a story, isn’t it? A bit of history in the channels of time. I had a quick talk to Rieko about it and asked if he thought I should discuss it and he said ‘nah, nah, it’s all done coach.’

“I think when people write books and bring up those moments, it’s going to create chat and talk and that’s part of the game. It doesn’t matter what sport, you’re going to have those little rivalries. But, there’s still a lot of respect that we need to show.”

Asked whether he was expecting some hostility up north, Robertson didn’t hesitate.

“Yeah! That’s all part of it, isn’t it? I think that the passion that they bring and the singing and getting to the games early, having a couple of quiet ones. It’s just a different atmosphere and that’s what we’ll embrace and look forward to.”

Whether it be for the drama or rugby spectacle, the quarter-final rematch is sure to bring plenty of eyes and continue the evolving rivalry between the northern and southern hemispheres; a rivalry that is growing increasingly unpredictable.

“The margins, if you look at it historically, the stats, the competition’s evened up; smaller margins, tighter matches. Defensively, teams are better, they’re more aggressive, they’ll turn you in,” Robertson said.

“But, there’s still opportunities and that’s what we’re looking for. People go into the match thinking ‘What’s going to happen?’ That’s the entertainment part of the game.”