Has anyone seen Mark Robinson?
Those of us of a certain heritage think of David McCallum as the ‘Invisible Man’, but Kiwi rugby fans are entitled to wonder if their sport isn’t being led by a modern successor in the guise of the chief executive of New Zealand Rugby.
Yeah, that’s probably being a little facetious. It’s a tough job Robinson has running a sport with so many vested stake-holders and when his iconic national team is not performing – as Ian Foster’s All Blacks assuredly aren’t right now – the clamour for answers becomes, well, rather intense.
But the CEO is the face of an organisation, in good times and bad. He takes the bows when things are tickety-boo, and must acknowledge the boos when the opposite is the case. There is a reason they are paid the big bucks.
Robinson was front and centre when his organisation unveiled a lauded, game-changing $200 million investment from private equity firm Silver Lake, with promises of a further $100m to follow.
However, he has been nowhere to be seen through the recent All Blacks stumbles, and the subsequent reshaping of the coaching team. While multiple decisions from his board have been questioned, all we’ve heard from the man running the show has been a short statement that fired a resounding shot across Foster’s bow.
He’s also been notably muted through a series of attacks and threats from Rugby Australia chairman Hamish McLennan over the trans-Tasman Super Rugby relationship. You get Robinson resisting a media to and fro, adding fuel to a fire being desperately fanned by the publicity-hungry Aussies over something that should be dealt with in the boardroom.
But the tone and repeated nature of McLennan’s barbs surely merited some sort of a riposte from the man running the show this side of the ditch, if only to appease his own people.
These aren’t the only difficulties Robinson has faced this year. An unflattering Black Ferns review, and resignation of coach Glenn Moore, did not shine a strong light on NZ Rugby. Robinson at least fronted over that, even if his words were far from convincing.
But it’s the All Blacks saga that has his constituency bristling.
Here’s where it gets interesting. New Zealand journalists in Wellington for the deciding Irish test were left with the distinct impression that Robinson would front on Sunday should the All Blacks suffer their first home series loss in 28 years.
Some took this to mean there might be consequences to defeat for Foster. It’s understood the coach certainly read it that way heading into the deciding clash. Which might explain his no-show for the scheduled – and customary – media opportunity the next day.
Instead Robinson issued a short digital missive, declaring the All Blacks’ series performance ‘‘was not acceptable’’ and the focus was on ‘‘understanding thoroughly in advance of the Rugby Championship what is needed to improve performance’’. Robinson didn’t mention why Foster and his coaching crew were appointed in the first place, then extended at various stages during and after a 2021 campaign that illustrated vividly the cracks that were appearing in the All Blacks edifice.
It’s well known players expressed their concerns about assistant coaches in the ‘21 tour debrief, but it was not until the loss to Ireland seven months later that John Plumtree and Brad Mooar were dumped. No mention of that either from Robinson.
And how has Foster survived this far when there is such a credentialed alternative on hand in the form of Scott ‘Razor’ Robertson who is now, rightfully, flexing a little with statements about wanting to coach offshore nations to World Cup glory, and having options at his disposal?
Lastly we’ve had Sir Steve Hansen piling on NZ Rugby in a spirited defence of his good mate Foster being hung out to dry by Robinson and co. Many of Hansen’s points were fair.
While Hansen has the runs on the board to fire his shots (he was part of back-to-back World Cup victories in 2011 and ‘15), he also conveniently overlooks the fact that he (and good friend Steve Tew, the former CEO whose absence he laments) essentially combined to green-light Foster’s appointment.
Now, how’s that working out for New Zealand Rugby?
Perhaps Robinson could have pointed this out. Or countered some of the barbs coming his organisation’s way. But, of course, he is nowhere to be seen. We’re told he’s in Birmingham for the Commonwealth Games – talk about fiddling while your empire burns – but that won’t be confirmed until there’s a sighting. Not the easiest of propositions when it comes to the NZR chief.
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