Webb of intrigue: The man behind the Crusaders’ production line
More than 50 All Blacks went through the academy of Super Rugby juggernaut, the Crusaders. Robert van Royen meets the man in charge.
The realisation future stars Anton Lienert-Brown and Damian McKenzie had slipped through their net was still raw at Crusaders HQ when Aaron Webb came on board as academy director in 2013.
Christchurch Boys’ High School midfielder Lienert-Brown and McKenzie, a Southlander who flourished at Christ’s College, had been snapped up by Waikato and the Chiefs and would quickly become All Blacks.
Lock Brodie Retallick, another local schooled at Christchurch Boys’, a 10-minute drive from the Crusaders’ Rugby Park complex, had already gone north and played for the Chiefs and All Blacks.
Geoff Cridge, a talented but injury troubled lock who went on to play for the Hurricanes and Waratahs, is another player Webb pointed out they let slip before his time.
‘‘There were a lot of reasons for that. But one of them was not quite getting it right locally. So we’ve put a huge focus on that in the 10 years I’ve been here, because our region’s kids are our bread and butter – they’re Crusaders kids,’’ Webb said.
The 51-year-old will bring up a decade in charge in May, having come on deck at the same time a young Richie Mo’unga was starting out in the academy.
That was before the Crusaders partnered with the Canterbury and Tasman provincial unions and launched the country’s first Super Rugby aligned academy in 2015, pooling their resources and featuring academy hubs in Christchurch and Nelson.
Having spent two years running the Canterbury academy, which worked in with the Crusaders and had a good reputation, Webb said the same could not be said of Tasman’s.
‘‘It was pretty dysfunctional at the time. They couldn’t retain their best talent. A big part of the change was to retain our best talent in the region – Tasman, South Canterbury, Canterbury, Mid Canterbury on this side of the island. West Coast, Buller.’’
Fast-forward eight years and the Crusaders boast a world-renowned academy, one which 53 All Blacks have come through. About 85% of members kick on and gain professional contracts.
Indeed, Scott Robertson, the surf-loving and charismatic head coach, gets all the plaudits for the Crusaders’ dominance – they’ve won six titles in as many years under the man who also won four titles with the franchise as a player.
But, as Crusaders chief executive Colin Mansbridge said: ‘‘Everyone goes ‘Razor, Razor, Razor’ – maybe there should be more ‘Webby, Webby, Webby’.’’
The production line
Somewhat of a clandestine operation only five or six years ago, the Crusaders have become increasingly transparent regarding their ability to identify and attract players, before shaping them into both rugby players and good men.
While much of Rugby Park in the Christchurch suburb of St Albans is now humming with activity related to the Crusaders honing in on another Super Rugby Pacific campaign, Webb and his 10-strong team (six fulltime and four part-time staff) are working with the future in mind.
Forget 2023, they’re operating with the 2026 and 2027 seasons in mind, working closely with general manger of professional rugby Angus Gardiner. Identifying when and where roster holes will be in advance is paramount for planning when it comes to recruiting.
‘‘We’re day-to-day, discussing players and roster management, same with the coaches. There is an art to it, there is an art to bringing guys in and making sure they’re ready to succeed when they get there,’’ Webb said. ‘‘Then, at the top, there is an art to when people need to move out, so we don’t lose the opportunity to bring someone else in. But we’re all about loyalty as well, so it’s a fine balance.’’
At any one time, the Crusaders usually have 40-43 players across their two hubs. This year, there are 24 based in Christchurch and 19 in Nelson, where they also service the Canterbury and Tasman NPC teams respectively.
Players typically spend between three and four years in the academy, although some – particularly outside backs and loose forwards – move on after two years. Locks, given they need to grow into their frames, typically take longest.
Unsurprisingly, the Nelson academy is loaded with players from the successful Nelson College first XV programme. In Christchurch, for the first time, Saint Thomas of Canterbury College (two players) has old boys in the academy.
‘‘We’ve only got two boys from out of town, and they were in positions that we needed to fill, and we didn’t have locally,’’ Webb said.
‘‘We do have a high concentration of good forwards in our region, just because of our geographical nature of where we live – service industries that are around us, farming. But maybe we don’t always produce great outside backs, so sometimes we have to go looking elsewhere for them.’’
Getting up to scratch
Newly signed Crusaders outside back Macca Springer is amongst those who was done after two years.
The Waimea College standout spent 2021 and 2022 chiefly working under Nelson academy manager Paul Galland, before signing a three-year deal with the franchise.
‘‘It’s probably even harder [than being professional], because you have to go to work from 7-3, then you get to training, then you have to do a gym session, then you might have club training after that,’’ he said of his time in the academy.
‘‘It’s pretty tough on the body, but it gets you through it. It gets you set up for the next years.’’
While some academy members have day jobs, between 75% and 85% are in tertiary education, Webb said, pointing out the importance of Lincoln University and the University of Canterbury in recruiting.
They’re not paid by the Crusaders. They study or work, and play club rugby outside training commitments with the academy.
They have access to Crusaders coaches, strength and conditioning staff, physiotherapists and a personal development manager, who assists with education, financial management and public speaking.
‘‘All of those life skills we’re trying to develop with them. Because if we get that right, and everything off the field is settled, the rugby takes care of itself,’’ Webb said.
‘‘[Some days] I could be connecting with players around learning how to flat, job wheels in flats, flat accounts, a whole variety of stuff.’’
There is also the opportunity to learn how the Crusaders operate during match weeks, starting with previewing their opponent and dissecting the game plan. They’ll attend Crusaders fixtures with Webb, watching the action end on and analysing it. Just like the Crusaders, they’ll review the match.
‘‘We make no bones about it. We want roughly 80% of our squad to come through our academy systems because then they know how we operate. They don’t have to spend a year figuring it out. They’ve been doing that while no one has been watching them,’’ Webb said, adding three to five players from the academy sign with the team each year. Chances to train with the Crusaders also exist, which proved crucial for hooker George Bell last year, when All Blacks rest protocol and injuries left them shorthanded, and he was called on to play the Force in Perth.
‘‘Those opportunities are great for them to understand what level they need to get to. But it’s also a great opportunity for that connection between the older and the younger players, so the skills are transferred,’’
Webb said.
‘‘Codie [Taylor] knows George because he’s been throwing with Codie for over a year before he came into the team.’’
Prowling for new talent
Webb spends about 60% of his time working hands on with players, travelling between Christchurch and Nelson, and the rest gauging prospective players, mostly in the Crusaders’ catchment area.
Armed with a network of people around the country, Webb will soon know if he needs to get on the road to evaluate a prospect in the flesh.
When Webb first started in the role, the Crusaders generally faced little competition when recruiting players. However, the competitive environment has increased ‘‘10-fold’’ as the other franchises attempt to establish successful development systems of their own.
‘‘Most of the time we get who we want, and there are reasons for that – we’re good at understanding our people – but also we’ve got a good reputation for looking after players who move here. We’ve had that since 1996, 1997, 1998, when Norm Berryman and Norm Maxwell came here,’’ Webb said.
That includes New Zealand under-20s captain Bell, who hails from a Shag Valley Station in Otago and was torn between the Highlanders and Crusaders.
Having opted to head to Christchurch after weighing up the development package Webb put to him, his name features four times on the gym whiteboard, which lists academy records by position.
‘‘He’s into commerce. Lincoln University was a really good fit for him, they obviously provided a rugby scholarship for him, and then we were able to put all the rest
of the content around the life skills around that. Putting that together, and also showing him a pathway of where he can grow and develop.’’ But there are exceptions. Knowing the Crusaders needed a plan at No 10 beyond Mo’unga, Webb had his eyes on pivot Taha Kemara while he was still at Hamilton Boys’ High School.
Wowed by the playmaker’s allround ability the first time he flew north to watch him play live, Webb tried to sign him up, only for the Te Awamutu product to commit to the Chiefs’ development system.
Webb told him it wouldn’t be the last he’d hear from the Crusaders, and so it proved. Kemara didn’t say no last year when the Crusaders put a three-year contract in front of the 19-year-old.
Webb didn’t get his man for the academy, but the Crusaders might have their long-term future No 10.
The pipeline
How’s the New Zealand rugby factory looking? Are there still ample of talented young rugby players such as Bell and Kemara coming through the ranks and ensuring the talent doesn’t dry? At a time fewer males are playing rugby in the country, that’s a valid question, one Webb is in prime position to answer.
‘‘I reckon we’re still producing the same level of talent, but not as many players are getting to that level,’’ he said.
‘‘The pool of players is smaller, so the pool of really talented ones coming out is slightly smaller as well. But the level they’re getting to is at least as high, maybe even higher. But it is a concern for the game.’’
‘‘Everyone goes ‘Razor, Razor, Razor’ – maybe there should be more ‘Webby, Webby, Webby’.’’ Colin Mansbridge Crusaders chief executive
PHOTOSPORT
Investing in the future
No New Zealand franchise pours the same amount of resources into their development system as the Crusaders, Mansbridge insists.
In fact, while he isn’t about to provide sensitive financial figures, Mansbridge said it’s not even close.
‘‘It’s significant. We would spend more in the academy than any other club by a multiple. It’s considerable ... we somewhat replicate what we have in the main programme in the academy programme.’’
Mansbridge, who replaced Hamish Riach in late 2018, once said if he was in charge of another franchise, the first place he’d look for players was the Crusaders’ academy.
He gets feedback from his counterparts, too, including from Michael Collins before he departed the Chiefs last year.
‘‘He talked about a couple of athletes that had been here and ended up in their environment. He said he saw them develop and come back and, yeah, ‘thanks very much’.’’
Mansbridge said other New Zealand franchises were making strides with their academies, including the Blues, who under chief executive Andrew Hore have strengthened relationships with provincial unions and were not haemorrhaging as much talent.
However, he stressed athletic development could occur anywhere, be it in Auckland, Dunedin, Nelson or Christchurch.
‘‘How you prepare yourself, what you do, when you deliver yourself. That is probably a bit of gold dust here.’’