New Zealand Rugby (NZR) chief executive Mark Robinson has hit out at claims by Ian Foster which he made in his autobiography regarding the decision to end his tenure as All Blacks head coach.<\/p>\n
In March 2023, NZR announced that Foster\u2019s four-year reign as All Blacks head coach would come to an end after the Rugby World Cup in France later that year with Scott Robertson replacing him.<\/p>\n
Foster<\/a>\u2018s coaching tenure was a turbulent one as the All Blacks<\/a>\u2018 form was indifferent and he came close to being fired in 2022 before a victory over the Springboks in Johannesburg saved his job.<\/p>\n Despite learning that he would be replaced by Robertson several months in advance, Foster still guided the All Blacks to a World Cup final in France which they eventually lost by the narrowest of margins to the Boks.<\/p>\n Foster\u2019s book, Leading Under Pressure, was released earlier this year and in it he revealed that the way his employment situation was handled led to him losing trust in Robinson<\/a>.<\/p>\n Speaking from Chicago, where the All Blacks will face Ireland in a Test on Saturday, Robinson told RNZ that \u201cthings that are being said and written publicly just aren\u2019t true\u201d in reference to Foster\u2019s autobiography.<\/p>\n \u2018There\u2019s a range of things that are just not true\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019t read Ian\u2019s book, but what\u2019s been sent back to me anecdotally is there\u2019s a range of things that are just not true,\u201d said Robinson, who will step down from his position at NZR at the end of this year.<\/p>\n Ahead of the 2023 World Cup, Robinson made public comments about Robertson\u2019s potential and the All Blacks\u2019 form which led to Foster describing their relationship as \u2018irrevocably broken\u2019.<\/p>\n However, Robinson believes the decision to replace Foster with Robertson was the right one.<\/p>\n \u201cAt the end of the day, we need these key decisions around the coaching environment, which were the right decisions at the right time, to give the team the best possible opportunity to win the World Cup,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n