Quade Cooper fires broadside at Rugby Australia while congratulating ‘good man’ Dave Rennie on landing All Blacks coaching gig
Dave Rennie and Quade Cooper ahead of a Wallabies Test in 2021.
Legendary Wallabies fly-half Quade Cooper has wasted little time in congratulating Dave Rennie on his appointment as All Blacks head coach, but also criticised Rugby Australia in the process.
On Wednesday, New Zealand Rugby announced that Rennie will replace Scott Robertson as the All Blacks’ new boss and he is set to take over the coaching reins once he completes his commitments with Japan Rugby League One outfit Kobelco Kobe Steelers in June.
Preferred to Jamie Joseph for All Blacks job
New Zealander Rennie beat out stiff competition from Jamie Joseph for the All Blacks coaching position and will take charge of the men in black ahead of their opening Nations Championship Tests against France, Italy and Ireland on home soil in July.
Cooper represented Australia in 80 Tests from 2008 to 2023 but spent four years in the international wilderness between 2017 and 2021.
He was recalled during the 2021 Rugby Championship by Rennie who was the Wallabies’ head coach from 2020 to 2023 when Rugby Australia fired him from his position shortly before the Rugby World Cup in France that year.
And Cooper, who currently works as the attack coach at Japanese outfit Hanazono Kintetsu Liners, reminded Australia’s administrators of how they mistreated Rennie while wishing him well with his new position in a social media post on X formerly known as Twitter.
“Shout out to coach Dave Rennie. After the way he was treated by our administration in Australia, to now find himself with arguably the biggest job in rugby feels like a little bit of karma,” wrote Cooper.
‘I’m genuinely happy for him’
“We let one of the best coaches in the game go. Not only did we let him go, we pushed him out the door. So, seeing him land on his feet like this, I’m genuinely happy for him.
“The ‘what could have been’ might still come back to bite us, especially with a home World Cup coming in hot.
“Funny how the universe works sometimes. Congrats to the All Blacks for appointing not just a top coach, but a good man who understands that the game is about people first.
“That will play a huge role in their culture.
“PS. You’re the enemy now though.”
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