I’m lapping up the AB coaching saga – and here’s why
At some time before Christmas, smoke will emerge from the New Zealand Rugby headquarters in Wellington to announce a momentous appointment – that of the new coach of the All Blacks.
At a congress not unlike the election of a pontiff, the good and great of New Zealand rugby will have gathered to gravely consider their options and reach a decision.
Perhaps they will have prayed for guidance, perhaps they will have adhered to some other arcane ritual to sharpen their deliberations and to bless the final outcome.
After the smoke has cleared, the anointed one will no doubt emerge on to the NZR balcony and signal his appreciation to the assembled worshippers below. It might be a breakdance, it might be a thumbsup.
Or there might be a press conference. The successful candidate will pay tribute to past coaches and express his (no her at this stage) honour at coaching a marvellous sports team like the All Blacks. He will be looking forward to the challenge, relishing the prospect of developing talent, and determined to maintain the finest traditions of the All Blacks.
It will be a blissful moment. He will at that point have done nothing for which he can be blamed, nothing he must claim responsibility for or ‘‘own’’, and nothing to apologise for. He will be all promise and unknown potential. His path ‘‘moving forward’’ will be undiscovered.
I, for one, will be lapping it up. You might think that, as a public intellectual, I might be a bit cynical and dismissive of the interest in such an insignificant matter.
After all, we put more mental resources and invest more emotion in the All Black coaching role than we do in far more important positions in the New Zealand establishment.
For instance, we spend far less time considering who we should vote into government. We are far less knowledgeable about the qualities needed of a leader of the Reserve Bank or the Super Fund.
Do we know who runs the ministries of health or social development? Have we a clue who is now the chief executive of Fonterra, our biggest company?
No, and that could be seen as a problem in the same way that many New Zealanders don’t know when the Treaty of Waitangi was signed, as new research highlighted this week.
That is to forget, however, what a wonderful distraction the All Blacks are. About who should coach them we can all have an opinion. It might be an informed and an educated one or it might not. It doesn’t matter. The climate won’t get warmer, no-one will die and democracy will not suffer.
The various commentaries, debates and newsflashes can be enjoyed as a mental exercise and as an entertainment. Mastering the various arguments is a pleasure. The complexities are easy to decipher.
When so many issues cry out for our concern, we can consider this one without a moment of stress or anxiety.
We can still ask why there should be all this new and excited fuss about an All Black coach.
It’s clearly a feature of the modern professional rugby era. In times past Grizz, Fred, or Laurie got the nod and the nation hardly blinked. Coaches had relatively short spells in charge.
But since 2004, the All Blacks have had only two coaches. This might explain why the imminent decision feels so momentous.
In the past, All Black coaches were not nearly as famous as the players. Does anybody remember John Stewart, Jack Gleeson or Bryce Rope? The coaches between 1996 and 2003 – John Hart, Wayne Smith and John Mitchell – are distant memories.
Coaches used to be appointed as individual entities. Now they are laughed out of court if they do not have a well-known assistant and a whole coterie of specialists ready to start immediately.
Qualities considered vital in the modern era were a secondary matter in previous times. The performance at the after-match press conference is now almost as important as the preparation of the team. The ability to play psychological war games with the opposition’s coach through the media is an essential new skill.
Coaches must be more than professors of rugby and great people managers. They must also be spiritual guides and role models as they shepherd their charges through the journey to becoming better people.
For the increased focus on the person at the helm we can also thank the example set by football teams like Manchester United and Real Madrid, whose new coaches are bigger news than a constitutional crisis.
A good recent example of this was the appointment of former Chelsea, Real Madrid and Manchester United coach Jose´ Mourinho as the new manager of Tottenham Hotspur this week.
‘‘I am excited to be joining a club with such a great heritage and such passionate supporters,’’ he said. ‘‘The quality in both the squad and the academy excites me. Working with these players is what has attracted me.’’
Right on script then.
The successor to Steve Hansen can expect an unprecedented amount of attention. Perhaps more than any other coach in New Zealand history.
And that’s the way it should be. We need the distraction more than ever.
We put more mental resources ... in the All Black coaching role than we do in far more important positions in the establishment.