All Blacks: New Zealand Rugby set ‘no later than’ deadline on Dave Rennie decision
All Blacks head coach and an inset of New Zealand Rugby CEO Steve Lancaster.
New Zealand Rugby have confirmed when Dave Rennie’s future as the All Blacks head coach will be discussed.
Rennie has just wrapped up his time in Japan, leading the Kobelco Kobe Steelers to their first title since 2019 and their maiden triumph since the competition rebranded to the Japan Rugby League One.
Having defeated the Kubota Spears, coached by former Bulls head coach Frans Ludeke, 22-13 in the final, Rennie’s focus now shifts solely on the All Blacks ahead of what will be a testing first year in charge.
New Zealand will host France, Italy and Ireland respectively this July in the inaugural Nations Championship before preparations begin for the debut Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Series where the All Blacks will tackle the Springboks in four Tests and play against all four of the South African United Rugby Championship teams.
Bledisloe Cup Tests will follow those matches, as well as the second leg of the Nations Championship in the Northern Hemisphere. All in all, it’s a busy and testing first year in charge for Rennie, who was named as Scott Robertson’s successor and beat Jamie Joseph to the role in March.
Dave Rennie’s future as the All Blacks head coach
He signed a deal through to the end of the 2027 Rugby World Cup, and while his future beyond that is unclear, New Zealand Rugby have already confirmed one coaching staff member for the post-World Cup All Blacks with Tony Brown signing a two-year deal starting from 2028.
In the statement confirming Brown’s commitment, New Zealand Rugby revealed when a decision on Rennie’s future and the future of the head coach position will take place.
“One of Don’s [Tricker, incoming NZR High Performance Director] roles is to lead the appointments of our national team coaches,” the statement read.
“As part of that, we have agreed with Dave that we will discuss the process for the All Blacks Head Coach role no later than the conclusion of the 2027 Rugby Championship.”
Essentially, if Rennie achieves his remit of getting the All Blacks back on track for the Rugby World Cup this year, NZ Rugby may move sooner to secure his services beyond Australia 2027. If not, they will give him more time in the year of the global showpiece and could fall into what Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus described as a mistake on SA Rugby’s part.
SA Rugby’s mistake during Rugby World Cup years
Ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup, Jacques Nienaber and Felix Jones were in the final year of their respective contracts, and without certainty over their futures, the duo subsequently made moves to the northern hemisphere, the former joining Leinster and the latter linking up with England. Jones has since returned, while Nienaber has expressed interest in rejoining the Springboks at some stage.
This is partly the reason why Brown’s future has been confirmed now, as SA Rugby have been locked in talks with Erasmus’ assistants, after the head coach re-signed through to USA 2031, as the union does not want to be discussing coaches’ contracts in the year of a World Cup.
“I think the big thing is our experience from previous World Cups,” Erasmus told reporters earlier this year. “I was part of the 2007 World Cup planning there, and then you know if you don’t win the World Cup, are you gonna have a job the next year or not.
“So, with Rian’s (Oberholzer) help and obviously everybody that’s involved in the protocols here (at SA Rugby), you sort of don’t want the World Cup year being (a time where) people are unsure about whether they have a job next year.”
At the time, Erasmus also expressed his desire to retain Brown’s services beyond Australia 2027: “We would love to keep him longer than 2027, but I don’t know when New Zealand will make him an offer or if they will make him an offer.”
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Now that they have and Brown has accepted, the Springboks boss said he is delighted for him: “Tony has made a remarkable difference, both on and off the field, and he has always been upfront with us about wanting to be closer to his family and about the All Blacks holding a special place in his heart, and we are genuinely delighted for him.
“We’ve made the mistake in the past of negotiating contracts in a RWC year, and this clarity will allow us all to go full steam ahead with our preparations for this and next season.”
Rassie Erasmus’ verdict on Tony Brown’s Springboks exit: ‘We’ve made the mistake in the past’
Different situation for the All Blacks
The situation for NZ Rugby is obviously completely different to that of the Springboks in 2023, and now with the union looking to turn things around after being unsatisfied with the results under Robertson.
While Erasmus and his staff have proven track records in their roles, Rennie has yet to oversee an All Blacks Test match, while discussing his future in the year of the World Cup is far from ideal; it’s a situation that is not entirely the current NZ Rugby board’s doing.
Speaking to the media after the announcement of Brown’s signing, New Zealand Rugby CEO Steve Lancaster was asked whether it was a concern that Rennie isn’t locked in beyond the Rugby World Cup.
He replied: “No, we have been pretty deliberate in not committing to long-term contracts across the range of coaches that we have secured, and it just allows us to have who we need when we need them but also to have continue to have dynamic conversations as time moves on.”
READ MORE: All Blacks to rediscover ‘something they lost’ under Tony Brown, legend predicts
