Razor seeks Deans’ advice
Scott Robertson has revealed he’s got advice from Robbie Deans as well as former All Blacks coaches about the pressure of taking on the biggest coaching job in New Zealand.
At a media opportunity in Auckland for the Super Rugby coaches after the 2020 squad announcements yesterday, the man everyone wanted to talk to was Robertson and it wasn’t really because of the 12 new players he’s brought into next year’s Crusaders squad.
Robertson has gone public with his desire to replace Steve Hansen as the All Blacks coach and he’ll embark on the interview process soon.
However, he was given a taste of what lies ahead when grilled by a large media scrum, eager to find out what his coaching philosophies were.
During his time in the spotlight, the 45-year-old Robertson revealed he had been in touch with former Crusaders coaches, including Deans, who he said was ‘‘enlightening’’ about his application.
‘‘I’m an extremely optimistic person in my nature and I need to have people that give me a bit of realism,’’ Robertson said.
‘‘Without naming names and there being a couple more articles written about it and they’d probably get phone calls about it, but
I’ve spoke to other coaches that have influenced me in the past, around their philosophy and how they’ve coached me, knowing me personally.
‘‘I’ve talked to them and we’ve got pretty deep, you need to, there’s a big process coming up ahead and I need to channel and processes and thoughts coming into it.’’
Robertson said he’d also spoken to former All Blacks coaches about the challenges that go with holding the high profile position.
‘‘I’ve talked to them on the personal and professional side of it and what’s required. With my family, I’m mindful of the status that it holds.
‘‘It’s one of the biggest jobs in the country, as we know, but my wife and our three young sons that really understand, well I’m not sure the youngest fella understands too much, but we’re happy at home and he’s happy.
‘‘I’m in a situation where I’ve got the family support, it’s my passion, I love what I do and for me the opportunity doesn’t come around too often.’’
Robertson ruled out spending any part of next season with the Crusaders if he got the top job with the All Blacks.
He said he was disappointed that Tony Brown had thrown his lot in with Jamie Joseph rather than himself, but was in talks with other assistant coach possibilities.
‘‘Tony has made his call, it was a tough phone call to take, we’d planned for a while to work together. So he’s shown his hand to work with Jamie and shown his loyalty.’’
Robertson said he had often spoken to senior figures in the game during his time in coaching, but he stepped this up when he decided to go for the All Blacks job.
‘‘I focused on the Crusaders doing the threepeat, that was huge for us in regards to send out the guys who’ve given so much to the jersey,’’ he said.
‘‘We really focused on making sure they went out on the highest possible note and then my focus went to if I was going to go for the All Blacks role. Once I decided, it was all in for both.’’
The last three All Blacks coaches had all spent time doing this role overseas before getting the job – John Mitchell with England and Graham Henry and Steve Hansen with Wales.
Other leading candidates for the All Blacks job will have overseas coaching experience, but Robertson doesn’t. However, he did spend three years in France, playing for Perpignan.
‘‘I suppose it all adds up,’’ he said.
‘‘You chuck it on your CV and I’m fortunate to be able to speak French from my time over there.
‘‘I understand how it works. They’ve got a different culture, a different way of playing, a different mindset.’’