Joe Schmidt weighs into All Blacks hot topic after Ardie Savea produces ‘best-ever Super Rugby performance’
All Blacks star Ardie Savea in action for Moana Pasifika and Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt.
Wallabies boss and former All Blacks coach Joe Schmidt believes that Ardie Savea’s position should depend on Scott Robertson’s back-row balance.
Debate continues to rumble in New Zealand over where the former World Rugby Player of the Year should be playing for the national team.
Savea has spent the past few years at number eight but many observes would like to see him shift to the side of the scrum in 2025.
Schmidt coached the 31-year-old in 2022 and 2023, and was asked on the Breakdown if it mattered where he features for the All Blacks.
The All Blacks hot topic
“Not really,” he responded. “It doesn’t matter who you’re looking at when you’re putting them together, you’re just trying to get some balance.
“Because Ardie is so dynamic off the back of the scrum, that’s great. He’s so destructive as a defender when he’s coming off seven.
“People probably underestimate how good he is in the lineout, he’s actually so quick because he’s so explosive – he’s a very good option. There’s not a lot he can’t do.”
Schmidt left the All Blacks following the 2023 Rugby World Cup final defeat, but he has still watched his performances with interest given his current role as Wallabies head coach.
“He’s great to coach. You saw the package just in those highlights [for Moana Pasifika]; left foot, right foot, power carries, so strong over the ball and so dynamic,” the 59-year-old coach added.
“He’s a great glue in the team as well, just because of the commitment he makes and the leadership he demonstrates with the actions that he delivers on the field. He’s a champion all-round.”
Savea has been an inspirational figure for his new side Moana this season and it culminated in an incredible display at the weekend.
Tana Umaga’s men defeated the Blues on Saturday to give them a good shot of making the Super Rugby Pacific play-offs, with the back-rower the standout performer.
“I don’t think I’ve seen a player inspire a team to a place we were not sure they could get to, and they’re right there right now,” ex-All Black Jeff Wilson said.
“Some of the things he’s doing on both sides of the ball are just remarkable, in a competition which is as tough as it’s ever been.”
Fellow All Blacks great Mils Muliaina then chimed in, with the Test centurion blown away by what Savea produced at the weekend.
“It’s not just last night, [but] that was probably the best-ever performance I’ve seen in Super Rugby on an all-round side of it,” Muliaina said.
Schmidt insight on Savea
Schmidt then gave some insight into the hugely gifted forward and how he manages to both produce for his team and also inspire the players around him.
“He’s not a massive talker, he’s just a fantastic doer. He mentioned it there briefly, I don’t think it’s just about what he does in those 80 minutes, those things he’s working on in training he takes into the [matches],” the Wallabies boss said.
“He’s contagious and his attitude to improvement is contagious.
“We had a set play, I think we played it against France in the World Cup, where it looks like he’s going to strike with the ball, and he does a little left foot chip over the top.
“I think Mark Tele’a might have scored in the corner on the back of the line break that Ardie created – he’s just got so many facets to his game.
“He’s that sort of player that fits in and he doesn’t try to overplay his hand, and he’s got a number of hands to play. It was a real privilege to be on the periphery of those couple of years.”
