All Blacks great claims coaches ‘more important than players’ as Scott Robertson ‘critic’ changes tune
All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson and former New Zealand back-row Murray Mexted.
Murray Mexted insists that the signs are promising for the All Blacks after being “critical” of Scott Robertson and his coaches last year.
New Zealand sealed a 3-0 series triumph over Les Bleus to get their Test campaign off to a winning start ahead of the Rugby Championship.
That competition will be the true test of their capabilities after facing an understrength French outfit over the past few weeks.
But after a mixed start to Robertson’s reign in charge of the All Blacks, Mexted believes that the head honcho has found the right formula in 2025.
‘Very, very savvy’ All Blacks coaches
“When Razor Robertson started, every man and his dog was a selector. There were so many guys that he threw forward so that he could get the job,” he told DSPN with Martin Devlin.
“Now he’s sort of whittled it down to three so Jason Ryan, Scott Hansen and Razor together are a very, very savvy group.
“I think they’re doing a hell of a better job this year than last year. I was quite critical, I didn’t think they had enough guys that could win the ball.”
Prior to the France series Mexted called on Robertson to shift Tupou Vaa’i to blindside flanker and that is exactly what Robertson did, with the Chiefs star impressing in the first two Tests.
“They’ve got it right now, they realised they needed some big guys so they’ve moved Vaa’i, who was playing really well [at lock] but was not big enough, to blindside flanker,” the former loose forward said.
“I thought that was a good move. Nobody’s played number six and said: ‘I am your man. Pick me, I am the All Blacks number six’. He’s been a success, you would have to say.
“Now he’s also got this big Dutchman (Fabian Holland). He works hard all game so I am delighted to see that. If you replace [Brodie] Retallick and [Sam] Whitelock, two of the world’s best, you’ve got to have somebody stepping into those shoes.
“He’s done a good job. I think they’ve got another one that they will bring in later, who’s the same size – that guy [Josh] Lord. He looks like he could handle the business as well. They’re starting to get a few things right.”
The importance of selection
Mexted insists that the coaches are far more aligned in their thinking this year, which the former All Black claims has led to better selectorial decisions.
“They’ve settled down to three selector coaches who obviously get on well together, they’ve worked with each other together and they know what they’re doing,” he added.
“I was a little bit critical last year but I was waiting to see them play their hand, but I think selectors and coaches are more important than the players they pick.
“These guys have really got to be onto it. They’ve got to be onto it at the top level.
“When they took over last year, all those coaches and selectors couldn’t agree on anything, and that’s why there were some strange selections. This year I reckon they’re agreeing and they’re doing a pretty good job.
“They now realise that there’s a big gap between Super Rugby and All Black rugby. Some players just can’t make that jump.”
