44 LISTENER MARCH 10 2018
THIS LIFE
GETTY IMAGES
H
urricanes coach Chris Boyd provided the
biggest talking points in the build-up to the
new Super Rugby season, which, for the
five New Zealand teams, gets under way
this weekend. (For those who can still be both-
ered trying to keep up with tournament organiser
Sanzaar’s incessant tinkering with the format, it’s
back to being a 15-team competition, following
the axing of Australia’s Western Force and South
Africa’s Cheetahs and Southern Kings.)
First, Boyd announced that after this, his fourth
campaign with the Wellington-based franchise, he’s
off to England to coach the Northampton Saints.
And although he dutifully insisted that he’d always
aspired to coach in the English premiership and
was “excited and humbled” to have landed the
Northampton gig, it was all somewhat undercut by
the downbeat presentation and admission that “in
a perfect world I would’ve stayed at the Hurricanes
for 10 years”.
So what would be different in a perfect world?
We don’t know, because no one’s saying. A possible
explanation is that Boyd regrets having shaken
hands on a rugby version of former Australian
Prime Minister Bob Hawke’s 1988 undertaking to
step aside for deputy Paul Keating after the 1990
election (when the time came, Hawke reneged on
the deal).
According to this interpretation, Boyd is honour-
ing an agreement to step aside for his long-time
coaching sidekick John Plumtree, but reluctantly,
and perhaps at the prompting of the Hurricanes
organisation. Plumtree, younger by seven years,
gave up an assistant-coach role with Ireland to
become Boyd’s No 2, and last year turned down
the role of head coach for the
Highlanders.
Boyd added the gratuitous
revelation that he hadn’t
spoken to All Blacks coach
Steve Hansen for three years.Hansen says otherwise, but won’t go
into detail. Although there’s some-
thing undeniably risible about blokey
rugby types giving each other the
silent treatment, the fact that Boyd
clearly just wanted to take a public
swipe at Hansen suggests New Zea-
land rugby hasn’t entirely eliminated
the coaching rivalries and associated
rancour that have long been part of
the game.New Zealand Rugby (NZR) general
manager Neil Sorensen’s comments
about succession planning for the
All Blacks coaching role received
less attention, but were far more
significant. There’s an expectation
that Hansen will step down after
next year’s World Cup and be
succeeded by his loyal assistant, Ian
Foster, in the same way as Hansen
was elevated after eight years of
assisting Graham Henry. Promoting
from within now tends to be seen
as providing desirable
continuity, as opposed to
jobs for the boys; a decadeof domination will have that effect.
But in a radio interview,
Sorensen indicated the NZR board
has reversed its position on the
eligibility of overseas-based Kiwi
coaches, to the point that Foster’s
lack of offshore experience may
count against him. For years, NZR
required New Zealanders coaching
abroad to spend a couple of years
re-familiarising themselves with the
local environment before they could
apply for the All Blacks job. Now, says
Sorensen, “all Kiwi coaches offshore
will be available”.I
t’s a slightly curious shift, since
the rest of the rugby world clearly
believes the Kiwi system provides
the best grounding a coach can get.
On the other hand, it does set the
scene for an intensely competitive
process involving a who’s who of our
coaching talent.
Keep an eye out for a ticket of
Joe Schmidt and Vern Cotter, who
have previously teamed up at
Bay of Plenty and at French club
Clermont. Schmidt coaches Ireland,
who are ranked third in the world
and regarded as serious World Cup
contenders. Having transformed
Scotland, Cotter is back in France –
at Montpellier – and reputedly the
highest-paid coach in the game. lMusical chairs
A coming change at the
Hurricanes’ helm prompts
talk of who might take
rugby coaching’s top job.
by Paul Thomas
SPORT
Vern Cotter, left and Joe
Schmidt: a likely ticket.Hurricanes coach Chris Boyd, left, and
assistant coach John Plumtree.It sets the scene for an
intense competition
involving our top
coaching talent.