Murray Mexted slams Scott Barrett ‘hoo-ha’ as All Blacks’ ‘proven combination’ backed for 2025
Current All Blacks captain Scott Barrett and former Test number eight Murray Mexted.
Ex-All Blacks forward Murray Mexted believes that the commotion over Scott Barrett’s Crusaders form has been blown out of proportion.
At the weekend, fellow All Blacks greats Jeff Wilson and Mils Muliaina raised doubts about the national team skipper’s displays, with the latter stating he “isn’t playing well.”
The 31-year-old also admitted himself that he has struggled to produce performances at the level required of a key All Black.
Barrett will inevitably be placed under greater scrutiny given that he is now captain of New Zealand, but Mexted still cannot quite fathom some of the comments.
All Blacks captaincy
Should his subpar displays continue, then there may even be a debate about his leadership position.
The Crusaders lock took over from Sam Cane for the 2024 Test season, but it was a tight call between him and Ardie Savea.
Scott Robertson ultimately went with the player he knows best in Barrett, and Mexted does not believe the head coach will make an alteration.
“They’re (Barrett and Savea) both very competent captains. I think this one’s really about Razor’s relationship. He knows Scott Barrett very well because he’s coached him in a Super team for many years,” he told DSPN with Martin Devlin.
“Your captain and your coach really have to be on the same wavelength, that’s really, really important, and you have to say they’re compatible – he wouldn’t have wanted to name him otherwise.
“There’s a lot of hoo-ha out there for no reason at all, it’s logical to me, it’s pretty simple. Scott’s been his captain, he relates to him and they both feel comfortable in that role.
“I don’t think there’s any question that his consistency of performance hasn’t changed, and I don’t expect it will change. He’s a 100 per cent man that Scott Barrett isn’t he?”
Barrett-Robertson relationship
Part of the reason Barrett got the role was his relationship with Robertson after they worked together for several years at the Crusaders.
In fact, the current All Blacks boss made the second-row his skipper in 2020, where they combined to win several Super Rugby titles.
“Your coach and your captain, they have to have the ability to work together even if they don’t have the same opinion on a particular issue or situation,” Mexted added.
“If they can’t work together, they don’t respect each other, it’s as simple as that. It’s a proven combination that Razor Robertson and Scott Barrett have.
“You can’t go into any big game if that relationship is not good. If there’s a breakdown between the coach and the captain then the team’s not going to be successful.”
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