The Myth of the Game-Changing Kiwi Rugby Coach

They’re sought-after all over the world, but are they any good? Jamie Wall says the numbers don’t back up the legend of the franchise-saving imported Kiwi rugby coach.

It seems like the natural path for a New Zealand pro-rugby player these days is a career playing Super Rugby, maybe the All Blacks if you’re good enough, then off to the Northern Hemisphere to pick up some coin before retirement. If you’re a coach, it’s the same but in reverse.

Kiwi coaches are being picked up all over the world with almost metronomic regularity. Ireland, Wales, Scotland and the United States all have one, and every major test playing nation (apart from South Africa) has had one in the past.

And yet, how many of them can claim to have actually been any good? You could point to Warren Gatland with Wales and Joe Schmidt with Ireland, although a closer examination at their records doesn’t do them any favours. Gatland’s win record is a hardly amazing 53%, while Schmidt’s a more favourable 69%. However, Ireland’s strength of schedule hasn’t been what you’d call tough, having only played the All Blacks, Wallabies and Springboks four times in total.

Their prestige seemingly comes from their success during the Six Nations, but anyone who had the misfortune of watching this year’s competition would tell you that’s nothing to brag about. Throw in early exits from last year’s World Cup and sudden Gatland and Schmidt look like pretty much any other Welsh or Irish head coach.Scotland, admittedly, were one debatable penalty from a shock World Cup semi-final spot last year under Vern Cotter. So they went into this year’s Six Nations with high hopes, then proceeded to disappoint everyone by reverting to type; getting beaten by everyone except Italy and a soul-crushingly poor French team. Cotter’s record sits comfortably under 50% and shows no sign of bobbing above that inauspicious mark.

Canada were more than happy to renew former All Black Kieran Crowley’s contract despite him doing absolutely nothing noteworthy in his seven years in charge. Crowley then decided to jump ship and leave them for an Italian club side who were presumably offering him more money, anyway.

Perhaps the biggest example of an NZ reputation getting in the way of actual facts is the recent appointment of John Mitchell as coach of the US Eagles.  On paper, the acquisition of a former All Black player and coach would be a fantastic move for a team that consistently gets their potential talked up and consistently fail to deliver. Perhaps US rugby didn’t actually bother to read any of the numerous articles regarding Mitch’s questionable behaviour and inability to produce any results with any team other than the All Blacks. Even then, him leading the Eagles to a shock loss to Brazil recently really hinted the depths they’re about to plumb with him in charge.

Is the proliferation of NZ coaches overseas a nefarious plot by NZ Rugby to undermine the strength of other test nations? If so, it’s working out very well and the strategic long game of sending Graham Henry and Steve Hansen over to Wales to establish a reputation back in the early 2000’s was key. But the masterstroke was bringing them back in exchange for the likes of Gatland, Mitchell and Robbie Deans.

Although they did also bring back John Kirwan, so their plan might not be that foolproof.

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