Rennie’s global view will shift All Black thinking, making them more dangerous

Statistics are great and have obvious value. Here’s one. Dave Rennie, the man appointed as All Black coach on Wednesday, had a 38% winning ratio as Wallabies coach between 2020 and 2023.

On the face of it, that’s a damning number, raising the question of how he got the All Blacks’ coaching job?

Well, here are some more stats. As Wallaby coach he has a 75% winning rate against the Springboks, winning three from four clashes.

Rennie won two Super Rugby titles as Chiefs head coach in 2012 and 2013. Overall, he had a 67% winning ratio as Chiefs coach in Super Rugby.

He led Wellington to their first NPC title in more than a decade in 2000, which was also his first year as head coach.

In three years as New Zealand U20 coach from 2008 to 2010 they won 15 out of 15 world championship matches and three titles. Those are some stats.

Global view

Only the New Zealand hierarchy and the panel that chose between Rennie and Jamie Joseph will know exactly what swung it in the former’s favour.

But a good deduction is that Rennie has a more global view of the world, having spent the past three years coaching in Kobe, Japan, and before that having taken Glasgow to the final of the PRO14 in 2019.

Rennie, 62, has travelled the world and understands that New Zealand can be parochial. Much like South Africans, New Zealanders innately believe that as one of the two greatest rugby playing nations, they are also leaders of innovation and standards.

And that might be true at times – the current Boks under Rassie Erasmus keep setting new innovations benchmarks.

But Erasmus’ most vital growth as a coach came during the two years he spent in Ireland at Munster. It took him out of the sometimes blinkered South African environment, and he admits freely that his time in Limerick made him a better coach.

Rennie was so sure that his global view was his point of difference that he invited the five-man New Zealand Rugby (NZR) panel to Kobe to observe his work first hand at his Japanese club.

“What we don’t understand in New Zealand is the quality of the game in the north,” Rennie said. “We think all the innovation in the game happens here. There is some fantastic rugby being played in other countries.

“My time in Glasgow helped me realise how strong the footie is up there. I watch a lot of the footie from the UK. The Six Nations is massive. The quality of the French and so on. I think it’s a competitive landscape now. I have coached across the world and I am really excited to come back home and do the jersey justice.”

Rennie’s global view might have been part of his downfall when he was Wallaby coach.

Despite a poor winning record, there were green shoots of promise. Rennie’s Wallabies were pragmatic and nuggety. They frustrated the Boks endlessly, especially at the breakdown, which three wins in four Tests against the world champions suggested.

But Rugby Australia – at least a few years ago – wanted a more expansive game with lots of tries to make it appealing to a dwindling local audience.

Eddie Jones turned heads with promises of a new dawn, and Rennie was unceremoniously sacked (technically his contact was not renewed) before Rugby World Cup 2023.

The Wallabies went on to endure their worst ever World Cup campaign, missing out on the knockout stages for the first time.

Rennie maintained a dignified stance, never taking swipes at the Wallabies from the outside. He is a good bloke, with good values, and a smart rugby coach, which makes him a dangerous opponent.

Former Wallaby flyhalf Quade Cooper took to social media to congratulate Rennie and criticise Rugby Australia for the way they treated him.

“Shout out to coach Dave Rennie. After the way he was treated by our administration in Australia, to now find himself with arguably the biggest job in rugby feels like a little bit of karma,” Cooper said. “We let one of the best coaches in the game go. Not only did we let him go, we pushed him out the door. So seeing him land on his feet like this, I’m genuinely happy for him.

“The ‘what could have been’ might still come back to bite us, especially with a home World Cup coming in hot. Funny how the universe works sometimes.

“Congrats to the All Blacks for appointing not just a top coach, but a good man who understands that the game is about people first. That will play a huge role in their culture.”

Overseas players

Given Rennie’s global experience, it was no surprise that he touched on the All Blacks’ player eligibility rule. Only players based in New Zealand are considered for the national team.

It’s becoming an increasingly antiquated directive in a global world. It took South Africa some time to come around to accepting that players can still be successful for the Boks even if they’re based at foreign clubs. It just requires good planning and communication, which Erasmus achieved.

Rennie used the great lock Brodie Retallick as an example of a player who is ineligible for the All Blacks but still the best New Zealander in his position. Rennie coached Retallick at the Chiefs, helping to mould the giant second rower into the World Player of the Year and a World Cup-winner. The pair currently work together at Kobe.

“I’ll comment on Brodie Retallick. I get to see him train and play every week. He’s stronger than he’s ever been, he’s fitter than he’s ever been,” Rennie said. “I’m not sure if I’m allowed to [pick him] yet. There’s no doubt we want to win the World Cup, and you need your best players available.”

Flyhalf Richie Mo’unga has also been based in Japan and did not play under former All Black coach Scott Robertson, who was sacked in January.

Mo’unga is widely considered one of the greatest No 10s in the game. Fortunately for Rennie and New Zealand, Mo’unga is set to return to his home country after the Japanese season ends, which should be just in time to join the All Blacks’ Greatest Rugby Rivalry Tour to South Africa in August and September.

“Obviously Richie [Mo’unga] is coming back, which is good because he’s been in great form in Japan,” Rennie said. “If you have someone like a Brodie Retallick coming into the environment, I reckon it would really grow the whole group. He’s done a phenomenal job around leadership at Kobe.”

Rennie will complete the Japanese domestic season at Kobe and take up the All Blacks job in June. DM