Dave Rennie: The All Blacks aren’t the sole innovators in rugby, the north have made massive strides
England's Fraser Dingwall scores against the All Blacks and an inset of new head coach Dave Rennie.
New All Blacks boss Dave Rennie says that New Zealanders must respect what is going on in the northern hemisphere as he takes stock of the international game.
Rennie was unveiled as Scott Robertson’s successor after going toe-to-toe with Jamie Joseph for the job, with his international experience surely playing a pivotal role in the decision.
One of the notable differences between the pair’s CVs was Rennie’s stint in the north, where he laid the groundwork for Glasgow Warriors’ success, helping the side to a PRO14 Final.
The former Chiefs boss admits that he learnt a lot during his time in Glasgow, where he witnessed the innovation taking place in the north.
At the Scottish club, Mike Blair served as his assistant and clearly left a mark on Rennie as he joined him at Kobe in Japan, whilst he also snapped up the services of Englishman Dan McFarland, who was the head coach of Ulster.
For a long time, the All Blacks and New Zealand Rugby were viewed as the chief innovators in the game with the men’s team winning back-to-back World Cups in 2011 and 2015 while the women’s team dominated with six titles, including four in succession.
New Zealand are no longer the chief innovators
This led to so many overseas clubs and teams turning to New Zealand to hire expertise but Rennie warns that they are no longer the world leaders.
“It’s a tough world now. It’s a tough global competition. I think there’s been massive strides made up north, and we take for granted that all the innovation and everything comes from New Zealand, and that’s not the case,” he told Jeff Wilson on Sky Sports NZ.
“We have got to respect what’s been happening out there, and we’ve got to learn from it.”
Additionally, he says that the All Blacks are still recovering from the plethora of experience that has left the team since the last World Cup.
“While there are a lot of players left, obviously, there is a lot of experience that left after the 2023 World Cup, and some of that’s not easy to replace; it takes a little bit of time,” he added.
“We still have plenty of good players here, so hopefully, the group that I have, we can provide detail and provide clarity and put that into performance on the park.”
‘All Blacks have abdicated World Rugby innovators throne with Scott Robertson’s sacking’
Rennie made no secret of his desire to recruit some experience back into the squad in the form of Brodie Retallick, who is his captain at Kobe.
The legendary All Blacks lock has been in sterling form this season in the Japan Rugby League One, crossing for a mind-boggling 11 tries in 10 appearances.
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Meanwhile, Richie Mo’unga is set to make his return later this year after signing a deal with New Zealand Rugby and the Crusaders, having plied his trade with Toshiba Brave Lupus since after the 2023 World Cup.
