Israel Dagg has admitted that he was shocked by Jason Holland’s departure and has claimed that it would have also surprised the All Blacks players.
It was announced on Thursday that the backs coach would be stepping down from his position following the end of the November internationals.
Following Leon MacDonald’s exit last year, it will be the second casualty in Scott Robertson’s coaching staff since he took over after the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
Despite Robertson’s insistence that it was solely Holland’s call, questions have been asked of the head honcho and the atmosphere within the backroom team.
Announced before Grand Slam tour
The timing has also been queried, given that it has been confirmed before their big games against Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales.
Dagg has defended the All Blacks over that decision, insisting it is better to let people know immediately, but conceded that he “didn’t see it coming”.
He said: “I think you’ve got to get rid of the grey area. Like every organisation, when you’re hesitant that can flow on to your delivery, the way that you coach.
“I’m not against announcing it right now so we can just move forward and allow Jason Holland to go over there and coach particularly well.
“I know the players will be caught off guard, none of them would have expected it and nor did I.”
There are currently certain similarities to Ian Foster’s reign, who saw Brad Mooar and John Plumtree depart during his tenure.
They were replaced in 2022 by Joe Schmidt and Jason Ryan respectively and it made a difference as the All Blacks reached the final of the Rugby World Cup just over a year later.
A successor to Holland has yet to be confirmed, and may not be for a while, but they will surely bring another coach in having lost both him and MacDonald in the past year.
‘No leeway’ as All Blacks head coach
“Fozzy got it wrong, it’s probably obvious right now. When he first came in, he probably didn’t get the people that he wanted, there was a lot of heartache there, a lot of hurt and obviously towards the end of his coaching career, he had the right people in there.
“They started producing, they started performing so maybe that’s the case of where we’re at now; Razor’s just tinkering and trying to figure it out.
“The thing that is clearly obvious with this is there’s time when you’re with the All Blacks, there’s no leeway, there’s no ‘she’ll be alright’ mentality, you’ve got to get it right from the outset.”