Josh Kronfeld believes Springboks series ‘not super fair’ on Dave Rennie as All Blacks role is a ‘deal for the World Cup’

Former All Blacks star Josh Kronfeld insists that Dave Rennie and his squad should not be judged on whether they win the Greatest Rivalry Test series with the Springboks.

The arch-rivals are set to go head-to-head in four internationals, with three of the games taking place in the Republic and the final match on neutral soil in the US.

The back-to-back world champions will be favourites for the series but there is more positivity emanating out of New Zealand following a promising southern leg of the Nations Championship.

There is always an expectation that the All Blacks emerge victorious but Kronfeld has not set his sights that high, knowing that they are taking on formidable opponents.

World Cup focus

Rennie’s target is ultimately the Rugby World Cup in Australia and, providing they show some improvement on this tour, the great openside flanker will be content.

“I’m not all about the win, I’m about how they present themselves, how the game pans out and if we get the win on top of that, I’m okay,” he told the DSPN podcast with Martin Devlin.

“This deal that Rens is having to roll with, it’s a deal for the World Cup, it’s building just for that moment. We’ve pulled the pin on someone else who had a four-year tenure.

“He’s got two years to find a pathway, to find a way of building this team into something special, to go away and hopefully win a World Cup.

“To do that, they’re going to have to find their mojo – you can use all the names in the world – but they’re needing to find themselves as a team. I think we’ve made some good steps towards it but I just want to see that continue growing.”

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Keeping it close

Kronfeld recognises that Rennie has been dealt a difficult hand by taking the job just over a year out from the World Cup and therefore isn’t demanding that they defeat the Springboks in the four-Test series.

“If the game goes tight and we’re still scoring points, and they’re still scoring points, or we’re both stopping each other from getting over the line, and it comes down to the wire, that’s pretty close to a win,” he added.

“That’s what I’m hoping for, I just don’t want blowouts.

“It’s not super fair is it? But life isn’t fair and that’s what he’s taken on board and he’s definitely got a great aptitude towards how he deals with people, how he deals with his individuals.”

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