Why Rennie chose Wallabies over All Blacks
Freshly appointed Wallabies coach Dave Rennie has revealed it was an easy decision to turn down an approach from New Zealand Rugby to consider the All Blacks job.
Because it came too late. The former Chiefs mentor was announced as the new Wallabies coach yesterday, taking over from Michael Cheika, on a deal that runs through until the end of the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
The confirmation means Rennie – like Warren Gatland, Jamie Joseph and Tony Brown – is officially out of the race to be the next All Blacks coach.
Rennie, who revealed yesterday that he had been talking to Rugby Australia for ‘‘a lot of months’’, said he was a long way through the process when the All
Blacks came
‘‘I’m a proud Kiwi but the big thing is I’ve been talking to Australia for a lot of months,’’ Rennie told Rugby.com.au. ‘‘The All Blacks’ interest came in late in the piece and by that stage, we’d done a lot of homework, we were really excited about the opportunity to go to Australia and that ended up being an easy decision,’’ Rennie said.
A four-hour long lunch with Rugby Australia chief executive Raelene Castle was a major influence in his decision. ‘‘Raelene Castle made a massive impression on me,’’ Rennie said. ‘‘We talked a lot about rugby calling. . . . about the state of the Australian game and my philosophies and so on,’’ Rennie said.
He said Castle was down earth and keen for change.
Speaking from Glasgow where he is currently coaching the Glasgow Warriors in the Pro14, Rennie also said the influence of the Wallabies’ new director of rugby Scott Johnson had played a role in his decision.
The pair have had a close relationship in recent years, with Johnson working as Scotland’s coach then director of rugby.
Rennie confirmed he will see out the season with the Warriors before formally joining the Australian setup in mid-2020, when the Wallabies host Ireland in a two-test series.
Rennie said he was excited by the young talent coming through the Wallabies system. to