Tana Umaga’s honest admission over All Blacks jersey as new coach wants to ‘bring the shine back’
New All Blacks coaches Tana Umaga and Dave Rennie.
Coach Tana Umaga has set himself the target of bringing the “shine back” to the All Blacks jersey under new head honcho Dave Rennie.
A legend as a player having captained them over 20 times, the former centre has now returned to the set-up as their defence guru two decades after he left.
Umaga joined the backroom team after Rennie replaced Scott Robertson, who was sacked as head coach in January.
The appointment of the ex-Wallabies boss has been met with enthusiasm within New Zealand and the 53-year-old has backed him to revitalise the All Blacks.
The influence of Rennie and Savea
“Rens is huge and every team he’s been a part of, what I’ve heard and what you’ve seen about how they perform, all of them talk around how great he is at making players feel like they’re part of history – they’re not just there on the ride,” he told Sky Sport NZ’s The Breakdown show.
“Getting that engagement is important, understanding who you are and what you represent is important, but also making sure that this is my time to leave a bit of yourself and be a part of that legacy.
“I think that’s important to me too… But at the end you’ve got to get out there and play the game, that’s what people want to see.”
Umaga also believes that Ardie Savea has a key role to play. They know each other well, having spent a season together at Moana Pasifika, where the back-rower proved to be a huge inspiration during the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific campaign.
“With Ards especially, he’s such an empathetic person, he feels what the players are feeling and he’s a good voice for the players,” he said.
“These young guys who come in, they won’t say anything. It’s not in a bad way but it’s just different, it just means that you’ve got to adapt and make sure their voice is heard the way they want it heard, but also understanding that this is what we’re about and how they’re going to add to that, not ‘I’m going to come in and change the world’. That happens over time.”
Making the All Blacks feared once again
There is now just a month to go until the true start of Rennie’s reign when they take on France in the Nations Championship before games against Italy and Ireland.
Matters then get much tougher when they tour South Africa as part of The Greatest Rivalry series, which includes four Tests against the Springboks.
Umaga states that the Rugby World Cup is the target but, like it did with Robertson, pressure will come on if results and performances aren’t forthcoming.
The former captain therefore wants to bring that aura back to the All Blacks so they can be truly feared once again.
“The ultimate goal is winning the World Cup, that’s why we’re in it, but as we know, within New Zealand we’re also expected to win every Test,” Umaga added.
“As a fan of the All Blacks, we’ve probably lost a bit of our shine. I want to start rubbing that jersey a bit and bring the shine back to it.”
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