Sir Graham Henry’s verdict on Dave Rennie’s opener as legendary coach admits new All Blacks style ‘reasonably difficult but possible’
All Blacks boss Dave Rennie and legendary coach Sir Graham Henry.
Sir Graham Henry believes that the All Blacks have taken a good first step under Dave Rennie after they defeated France in the Nations Championship.
Playing their first game under the new head coach, who replaced the sacked Scott Robertson, they edged past Les Bleus 34-32 in Christchurch on Saturday.
While there were teething issues, which is expected given that they have barely had any time together, there was clear evidence of a game plan.
And Henry, who is now a selector for Rennie’s All Blacks, was pleased with their start to life under the 62-year-old.
Henry’s verdict on All Blacks
“It’s been really positive. We tried to play, did some really good things. A lot of things need working on and so it’s good to get a win,” he told Sport Nation.
“We’ve got 34 guys that have been picked for this series of games, so it’s just a matter of trying to pick the right team each, just depending on how guys are, how their bodies are.
“We’ve taken one or two injuries and there’s no point putting guys out there who are not right, so it’s a matter of trying to pick the best team available each week and to keep guys fresh, and to give people opportunity.
“Trying to get that balance right is difficult at times.”
Rennie’s predecessor, Robertson, was criticised for his conservative approach to selection and the All Blacks’ game plan but ‘optimism’ has been the new regime’s watchword.
That was certainly the case in their opening game of the Nations Championship, where they played with a fluency not seen since the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
Although there were mistakes, which led to the momentum switching back to the French, it was a good starting point for New Zealand.
The ‘Hurricanes style’
“When you’re playing on the edge, sometimes you take a bit more risk and you’ve got to take risk to be the best you can be – you’ve got to take a wee bit of risk – but I guess it’s the balance,” Henry said.
“It’s the balance of being a bit more patient, not pushing passes that are not on, and that comes with experience of playing this style of rugby.
“This style of rugby has been played by the Hurricanes; they played it superbly, but a lot of these guys haven’t played this sort of rugby before, so it’s going to take a while to settle in and be as accurate as possible.
“Obviously, when you’re playing this sort of game, there’s much more catch-pass, and there’s much more catch-pass in traffic, so being accurate and doing that is reasonably difficult but possible.
“That’s the challenge, trying to get it perfect. We’re not gonna get it perfect but if we get it close to perfect, we’re going to be pretty good.”
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