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No-shows from England and France in our Six Nations team of the week
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Tamaiti Williams says All Blacks must 'get together and figure it out'
By Ned Lester
All Blacks powerhouse Tamaiti Williams has shared his reaction to Scott Robertson’s All Blacks exit, noting it’s a “tough world” and expressing his love for his former Crusaders coach.
Williams debuted for the Crusaders under Robertson in 2021, ascending to the Test arena ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup. His All Blacks debut against the Springboks during the truncated 2023 Rugby Championship saw Williams become the heaviest-ever All Black at 139kg.
With much of his professional career coming under Robertson’s tutelage, the coach’s departure is an especially big change for Williams.
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“It’s a tough world we live in, right? But a lot of love and prayers go to Razor and his family. I know he’s going to do well, whatever he does,” Williams said.
“And for us as players, we’ve just got to get together and figure it out, I guess. Looking forward to what’s next, but also, love to Ray.”
The 25-year-old now has 27 Tests under his belt and is contracted with New Zealand Rugby for not just the remainder of the current World Cup cycle, but until the 2029 season, which includes a British and Irish Lions tour of New Zealand.
Robertson’s contract ran through to 2027, but findings from an end-of-season review were delivered to the New Zealand Rugby board at the start of the month and triggered a rethink.
New Zealand Rugby chair David Kirk told media in Auckland that the board had concluded the All Blacks were not on track to win the 2027 Rugby World Cup, and a subsequent conversation with Scott Robertson ended in a mutual parting of ways.
“I don’t really know too much about the review process, but we just got told it was very thorough; there was no bias in it,” Williams said. “So for me as a player, my job’s to now be back with the Crusaders and give my all to the Crusaders.”
Reports that suggested disgruntlement within the All Blacks’ playing group have been heavily debated, and Williams said he was unaware of any serious doubts or concerns over the team’s direction.
“Definitely not to my knowledge. I’m a player. I get told to run into people and tackle people as well. So whoever the coaches were and whoever they’re going to be, I have full trust in and I guess it’s my job just to buy in 100%,” he said.
“My opinion on it is we trust whoever gets the role. We back them and then we get the job done. That’s quite simple … whoever comes in, trust them and good luck.”
