The Blues proved once again they cannot make athletes better rugby players

There’s a lot said and written about the Blues.

And, understandably so, given Auckland is the epicentre of the New Zealand media universe.

But as the Crusaders were methodically dismantling the Blues in Christchurch last Friday night, it wasn’t the quality of rugby that I thought of. No, it was the years of drivel out of Auckland that suggested the Blues were an elite team operating under accomplished coaching.

The evidence, unfortunately for the Blues’ vocal apologists, suggests anything but.

These Blues remain a collection of athletes. Guys who, on their day, can be individually brilliant, but will be badly exposed by a genuine team playing to an actual game plan.

So it was in the Super Rugby Pacific semi-final in Christchurch.

I’ll always remember an All Blacks coach making that observation to me about one particular Blues player. Adding that the player, for all his natural talent, was not being well coached at the Blues but would do better in the national environment.

As a quick aside, I can remember few All Blacks squad announcements as underwhelming as this week’s.

Good on those players who were named, but I can’t escape the feeling we throw contracts and caps around like confetti.

We pick guys with no apparent expectation that they will be 50 or 100-test All Blacks. They are simply fill-ins or short-term projects and you only have to look at the number of actual All Blacks in the All Blacks XV squad for evidence of that.

Some of that, inevitably, comes back to coaching.

The days when a player was improved by exposure to the All Blacks’ environment appear to be over.

In fact, I’d go as far as saying it is only at the Crusaders and Chiefs where any rugby player in this country actually develops.

I’m not talking about improved skin-folds or personal bests in the gym. I’m talking about actually being better at winning rugby games.

I don’t know what the future holds for Crusaders loose forwards Christian Lio-Willie or Sione Havili Talitui, but I’m certain that they wouldn’t be the players they are now if they were at the Blues or Hurricanes.

We can’t quite write off the 2023 All Blacks. I mean, there is a Rugby World Cup this year, after all.

But, as I cast my mind towards 2024 and beyond, I see big jobs ahead for Scott Robertson, Jason Ryan and Scott Hansen.

I’m not sure Leon MacDonald (Blues) or Jason Holland (Hurricanes) have distinguished themselves as Super Rugby coaches. I’ve no doubt Robertson rates them, but I don’t see huge evidence either have track records of making players better.

Robertson does and his challenge – in concert with Ryan and Hansen – will be to take what’s worked for them at the Crusaders and try and replicate it with the All Blacks.

I’m aware that not every rugby fan is fond of the Crusaders and that some find their success tiresome.

But no-one could have watched what they did to the Blues and not admire the ruthless efficiency.

So that’s why I’m hopeful. That’s why I look with some excitement towards Robertson’s reign and am optimistic that the All Blacks can again become a place where players go to get better.

Just like they do at the Crusaders.