Julian Savea opens up on All Blacks’ fortunes and gives blunt verdict on brother Ardie’s captaincy credentials
All Blacks star Ardie Savea (inset) and his older brother Julian, who currently plays for Moana Pasifika.
Julian Savea is optimistic about the All Blacks’ chances after their recent coaching changes and feels his brother, Ardie, is the right man to lead the team.
The veteran speedster, who scored 46 tries in 54 Tests for New Zealand between 2012 and 2017, is currently plying his trade with Super Rugby outfit Moana Pasifika but is sidelined due to a shoulder injury.
Savea was in the All Blacks set-up at a time when they were the dominant force in the international arena and finished their triumphant 2015 Rugby World Cup campaign in England as the leading try-scorer at the global showpiece.
Although they are currently ranked as the number two side in World Rugby’s official rankings – behind their arch rivals the Springboks – Savea admits that the All Blacks and the general state of the game in New Zealand, particularly at Super Rugby Pacific level, is concerning.
‘Definitely not looking good’
“It’s definitely not looking good to be honest – getting the eyes and bums on seats,” he told The New Zealand Herald.
“We’ve relied on the All Blacks to push us through – expecting viewership, or kids nowadays to play rugby, because of the All Blacks.
“I just think it was a bad strategy to rely on that for so long.”
Meanwhile, other sports like football and basketball have been more appealing to youngsters, especially as rugby deals with issues such as concussions and concerned parents.
He feels that the current trend for rugby union in New Zealand is concerning.
“I definitely think there should have been things in place to make rugby more appealing to the younger generation,” said Savea.
When asked if the situation is salvageable, Savea replied: “I don’t know, to be honest.”
With Dave Rennie replacing Scott Robertson as the All Blacks’ new head coach, many rugby lovers in New Zealand think Rennie should install a new skipper.
When Robertson took charge of the All Blacks, he appointed Scott Barrett, who he worked with at the Crusaders, as captain ahead of Savea’s younger brother, Ardie, who was the 2023 World Rugby Player of the Year.
It was a massive decision and one that potentially backfired with questions often raised over Barrett’s leadership as well as his form.
The older Savea believes his younger brother is the right man for the leadership role.
‘Ards would be an awesome captain for the All Blacks’
“I think Ards would be an awesome captain for the All Blacks – he leads from the front anyway, so I think for him personally he understands that if someone else gets [to be captain] there’s a greater good kind of thing happening,” he said.
With the All Blacks not reaching their usual great heights, which was the norm during his time with the three-time world champions, Julian reveals that the men in black’s form is something which he discusses regularly with Ardie.
“It’s hard,” said the 35-year-old regarding the All Blacks’ performances in recent years. “I always give Ardie sh*t about it. I’m like, ‘I’ve never lost this much!’
“And he’s always giving it back to me as well – he says, ‘I never had Richie [McCaw], Ma’a [Nonu], Conrad [Smith] and DC [Dan Carter]’.”
Despite their recent hiccups at Test level, Savea feels the All Blacks have the players to build a new leadership group and challenge the Boks’ status as the best team in the world.
“I remember every time I came to the All Blacks, it was easy because everyone just had to do their job,” he said.
“When you’ve got everyone else doing their own job, it’s easy to trust – it just makes me worry about what I have to do, which makes it easy.
“I just remember feeling, ‘man, this is awesome’ – being able to just focus on what I need to do for the team.”
He also feels that peripheral factors have added to the pressure on the players.
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“The scrutiny that we were dealing with when I was there was that you didn’t play well enough. We’d beat a team 24-16, and that wasn’t good – ‘you guys should have smashed them’.
“Those players shouldn’t be in the team or this player shouldn’t be in the team. Those were the scrutinies we were dealing with, right?
“Not who’s the best coach or issues over who’s going to bring us the best opportunity. Seeing Ardie go through all of that, it’s tough.
“But I believe Rens and their coaching group will bring it back.”
