JOHN KIRWAN - HOW I BEAT THE BLUES
RUNNING with poise and purpose helped to make him the most revered All Black of his generation, and now as a coach Sir John Kirwan is on a mission to bring style and substance to the Blues.
He is in his second year in charge of the slumbering giants and Kirwan is desperate to avoid last year’s mistakes.
“We had a young team and we didn’t do well on the ground. We have compensated for that by increasing the quality of our side,” he said about the acquisition of Tony Woodcock, Ma’a Nonu, Tom Donnelly, Jerome Kaino and rugby league star Benji Marshall.
“We’ll have guys that can rest and when it gets tough we’ll have fresh legs. We must have courage to change and we’ve already made a few changes in the first three games. We need to continue building the full squad rather than the XV, like last year.
“We also completely changed our leadership group. They drive expectation and performance. That is fundamental in any side. Our young leadership under Luke [Braid] is making sure we tick all those mental boxes.”
Last year he also assembled a stellar coaching staff, which includes Sir Graham Henry, Mick Byrne and Grant Doorey, who assisted him when he coached Italy and then Japan.
With so many men of repute at his disposal, expectations are high.
“Totally,” Kirwan, who turns 50 in December, agreed. “I enjoy the expectation. We haven’t won for 11 years. We are a proud franchise. The first thing you need to do in this competition is play well enough to make the play-offs, so it’s important to get consistency.
“We are a unique franchise of many cultures. That’s who we are. We need to express that on the field. We’ve got Tongans, Samoans, Fijians, Niuean (a South Pacific island), Maori, Pakeha [Maori term for New Zealanders who are of European descent], and we need to put all those together. If you can do that then you’ll have a very strong family culture.”
As the side develops, Kirwan knows he needs to as well. “One of my goals is to continue to learn. The coach I am this year is different to the one of last year. If you don’t keep growing and evolving, the game leaves you behind. I’d like to think I’m constantly changing. That starts with me, and the people around me will follow.”
He has never lacked confidence, but the courage needed to make changes wasn’t always within Kirwan’s reach. He suffered depression for three years while he was still playing before finally reaching out.
He is outspoken about the illness that afflicts one in five Kiwis. He was knighted for broadening awareness about the illness.
“I’ve got television ads running and I have a website that is visited by two million people. It is www.depression.org.nz, and gives you practical ways to get you through mental illness. I’m really passionate about that side of my work.
“We’ve still got our farmers and young people struggling with mental health. The suicide rate is still too high.
“For it is really an important part of what rugby’s given me. Rugby’s given me everything I have. I just want to cut down the stigma.
“It’s an interesting illness in that people think it is a weakness and they don’t talk about it.
“If you’re feeling off colour you need to reach out and get help, like you would with any other illness. It’s in all walks of life. You’ll pretty much know someone who has had depression or is still suffering,” he said.