Tony Brown is the Charlie Ngatai of coaches. His reputation is just growing and growing, and it doesn't really align to his achievements.

He supposedly did great things for the All Blacks as 'skills coach' and there was much consternation when he went back to the Wallabies. The results didn't really bear out those fears.

I shared a urinal with him at the end of the day. Friendly bloke and highlight of the day.

New Zealand Rugby's All Blacks coaching selection panel needs fresh ingredients
KEVIN NORQUAY
14:10, Nov 11 2019

There are 26 in the race, all Kiwis, and four among the favourites - no it's not the Melbourne Cup, but the race to become the next All Blacks coach.
OPINION: When it has been proven diversity leads to better decisions, New Zealand Rugby (NZR) has missed out by naming a rugby-heavy panel to select its All Blacks coach.

Four of the five panel members are closely aligned with NZR; Sir Graham Henry, chairman Brent Impey, incoming chief executive Mark Robinson, head of high performance Mike Anthony.

And yet those names are getting most of the public nods, with the head shakes aimed at netball icon Waimarama Taumaunu.

Sorry for being rude, but that reaction is arse about face. At a post-Rugby World Cup downtime when fresh ideas are crucial, it must be asked why there so many on the panel immersed in NZR culture.

​Impey and Anthony were part of the structure that ended in 2019 Rugby World Cup semifinal elimination against England.

For so long NZR has been an organisation led from the top down by Steve Tew and Steve Hansen, with those beneath doing their bidding.

Henry, Impey and Anthony have all been part of that. A range of (possibly dissenting) outside voices would have aided their quest for the best coach.

Get lost, you may wail. What could outsiders teach RUGBY about anything?

If you did wail, you've just presented an audible example of the closed mindset we are talking about. Thanks for helping make my point, your money is in the post.

Sports fans, I present England football coach Gareth Southgate, who ahead of the World Cup set out to discover why his side were so poor at winning tournaments, and taking penalties.

No team had lost more penalty shootouts at the highest level than England.

Southgate put together a panel that had an IT expert, one international footballer, a sports administrator, a cycling coach, England rugby coach Stuart Lancaster, an army officer, and a table tennis player – with all but the footballer wondering what they could possibly teach football.

A great deal, as it turned out. At the 2018 World Cup, England made the semifinals and won a penalty shootout against Colombia.

Yet, the Southgate innovation was met with initial disbelief along the Taumaunu lines of last week.

"The FA does not need experts in cycling, rugby union and table tennis to advise it on why a bunch of footballers are so hapless at tournaments," Henry Winter wrote in The Times.

In his latest book Rebel Ideas, Matthew Syed – the former international table tennis player on the panel – said the meetings had many "exhilarating moments", with each specialist saying things from their own experience not known to anyone else.

The tech expert talked about how to drive innovation, the military specialist had insights on mental fortitude under stress, the cycling coach talked knew all about fitness and dietary improvements.

Southgate learned from them all and that's the point: a diverse group can know more than a panel who all have same background.

NZR has lost the prospect of incorporating broader knowledge. No former player, no Pacific Island or Māori member, only one woman, a narrow business perspective.

That was the very point twice World Cup-winner Sonny Bill Williams was making, when he called for a Pacific Island or Maori coach for the All Blacks.

Former All Black captain Reuben Thorne felt there could have been a player on the selection panel. Keven Mealamu comes to mind.

Rugby coaching in its most simple form is taking a group of individuals, and getting them to work together in a way that maximises all there talents.

It's just like a business, with rugby boots on.

Off the top of the head, Air New Zealand chief executive Rob Fyfe, My Food Bag entrepreneurs Nadia Lim and Theresa Gattung all know how to create winning teams – Fyfe's was even a national team, just like the All Blacks.

In Rebel Ideas, Syed examines why homogenous institutions tend to fail, and why diverse teams become more than the sum of their parts.

While two World Cups in a row can not be deemed failure, the All Blacks - for whatever reason, be it physical or mental - underperformed in the semifinal against England, failing to reach anything like their full potential.

Let's imagine for a moment, it was a coaching issue that NZR would wish to avoid in future, this selection panel does not appear to have the breadth of vision to detect all the key details.

​Potential All Blacks coaching contenders could include Hansen's assistant Ian Foster, Crusaders coach Scott Robertson, Japan coach Jamie Joseph and former Chiefs coach Dave Rennie.

​Shortlisting, interviews and negotiations would be conducted through November and early December, with head coach to be announced prior to the Christmas break.

Without wishing to be a pre-Christmas grinch, let's hope the NZR deliver the right present.

So now "celebrity" chef sheilas should be selecting the next coach.

Who are these mongtarded journalists? TP McLean would be spinning in his grave.

F*ck me, I wonder why you'd name a rugby-heavy panel to select a rugby coach?

The All Black coaches should be selected Hunger Games style.

Word from the horses mouth. Gatball will not be the next coach of the ABs

Yes, says he was offered the AB role but wanted to focus on the B&I Lions as already contracted to do that tour to SA. Fair play to him.

I don’t want Gatland’s sour face anywhere near the ABs. I would rather have Foster.

Could someone answer a question please, if Razor gets top job does he stay with Crusaders or not?

Surely not!

Robertson ruled out spending any part of next season with the Crusaders if he got the top job with the All Blacks.

I shared a urinal with him at the end of the day. Friendly bloke and highlight of the day.

I dont know, that's why I'm asking. I assume he doesnt, but doesnt that leave the Crusaders in a tough spot, he would have systems and plans etc all ready in process, what happens? Anyone?

Scott Robertson has spoken of his disappointment at hearing Tony Brown had decided to support Jamie Joseph in his push to be the next All Blacks coach, but conceded: “I appreciate it was a tough call for him to make to me.”

Crusaders coach Robertson had hoped to team up with Japan assistant coach Brown, whose stock rose significantly during the recent Rugby World Cup along with that of hosts Japan after their groundbreaking victories over Ireland and Scotland and meritorious performance in their quarter-final defeat to eventual champions South Africa.

The pair would have made a compelling partnership but instead Brown, who is returning to New Zealand to help Aaron Mauger with the Highlanders, has thrown his lot in with Joseph, the current head coach of Japan who also has All Black ambitions.


“Tony made his call,” Robertson said today. “It was a tough phone call to make. We had planned for a while to work together. He showed his hand to work with Jamie – and his loyalty. I appreciate it was a tough call for him to make to me.”

Robertson, who spoke to the media at the official announcement of the New Zealand Super Rugby squads, will relinquish his role as Crusaders head coach should his All Black interview in early December go well and the recommendation of panelists Sir Graham Henry, Mark Robinson, Brent Impey, Mike Anthony and Waimarama Taumaunu is signed off by the New Zealand Rugby board.

But now the man known as Razor is in the process of finding another running mate to replace Brown, and he added: “That’s part of the game. You have conversations with people and you work out the best options for yourself and what is going to be best for the team. They are private conversations as you can imagine.”

Robertson, prepared for questions on his goal of replacing Steve Hansen but perhaps not expecting such an interrogation a month or so before his official interview, was asked whether his background of success with the Crusaders – three consecutive titles – and before that Canterbury, represented a good foundation for the role of All Blacks head coach.

He replied: “Do you have to lose to learn to be a better person and better coach? That’s for them [panel] to decide.

“I’ve got my formula and I’ve worked really hard coaching schoolboy rugby through to club rugby and to Super Rugby. All the learnings along the way can help me in my quest to be All Black coach. It’s up to them whether they feel that experience is enough. I think it was shown in the most recent tournament; the right person for the job is the key ingredient.”

He also confirmed he had spoken to several mentors about the process, including Robbie Deans, a former Crusaders and Wallabies coach.

“I’m an extremely optimistic person,” Robertson said. “It’s in my nature to see a lot of opportunities in things. I need to have people to add a bit of realism. Without naming too many names, there are a lot of ex-Crusaders coaches who have influenced me. I’ve talked to them and have got pretty deep – you need to, it’s a big process coming up and they’ve needed to challenge me and my thoughts and processes coming into it.”

He said he and his family were ready for the step up in intensity and profile. “I’m really mindful of the status that it holds. It’s one of the biggest jobs in the country, as we know. My wife Jane is in, we’re all in. I’ve got three young sons who really understand – well, I’m not sure the youngest one understands but if we’re all happy at home he’s happy.

“It’s a real passion of mine, I love what I do and the opportunity doesn’t come around very often.”

He has support if not sympathy from Blues rival Leon MacDonald, who worked under Robertson at the Crusaders in 2017 before shifting north. MacDonald, preparing for his second season with the Blues, said: “I know that my brain is working overtime on one job, so to have two in mind will be a challenge, but he’s the sort of guy who can cope and do both well.”

Looking at the contenders, I sometimes wonder if it’s hard to go wrong with any of them. Foster is my least favourite but even he has his qualities (he has been part of an extremely successful period for us).

Can you expand on this? What are Ian Foster's strengths and qualities as a Head Coach that you find so appealing? As an Assistant Coach, he was a key part of our recent RWC 2019 failure. And let's be perfectly honest, it was a failure by NZ standards. So what is it about him as a Head Coach that you are drawn to?

David Moffet (ex NZRFU boss) saying Shag and the Zoo stayed on 2 years too long, and is calling for a complete clean out and fresh blood in the AB hotseat.

I agree.

Can you expand on this? What are Ian Foster's strengths and qualities as a Head Coach that you find so appealing? As an Assistant Coach, he was a key part of our recent RWC 2019 failure. And let's be perfectly honest, it was a failure by NZ standards. So what is it about him as a Head Coach that you are drawn to?

JRFU announce that Jamie Joseph has re-signed as head coach of #BraveBlossoms from Jan. 1, 2020 to Dec. 31, 2023.

Does that mean Brown as well. I’d like him in the mix for the ABs still.

So do we wait until a coach is at his peak and then sack him?
Who would you have replaced him with two years ago?
A new coach may well have been worse.

Moffett's a wanker so easy to ignore him.

Robertson’s got it then. Foster is on a hiding to nothing in the press and Robertson is being reported as the second coming. He has all the momentum.

Looks like Foster has been following Shags example making sure hunger is not an issue they face