Murray Kinsella reports from London
NEW ZEALAND DO things a little bit differently, off the pitch as well as on it.
While other nations generally put a head coach and one player at the main table for press conferences and reserve one or two players for smaller huddles with journalists afterwards, the Kiwis simply plop everyone in front of the room at once.
Two players and a coach at the top table for ten minutes or so, then the media manager sends them out and brings in three more players. Because it’s New Zealand, pretty much every one of them is a world-class star.
It also means that the line of questioning can be utterly scattergun. One-on-ones are hard to come by, during World Cup final week especially, meaning every journalist has their own agenda when the flag drops.
Nehe Milner-Skudder and Aaron Smith flanked assistant coach Ian Foster yesterday, then Brodie Retallick, Sam Cane and Dane Coles followed them in.
From questions about firehouses to queries about David Pocock and on to the importance of learning from one’s elders, there were few obvious linking threads in the interrogation.
Apart from the small matter of a World Cup final of course. There is another theme here too, perhaps one that was deliberately presented by the Kiwis’ management, perhaps not.
Not one of the men on media duty yesterday was involved in New Zealand’s World Cup triumph in 2011. None of them had been capped at that stage, while Foster wasn’t part of the coaching staff.
We’ve heard so much about the experience of this Kiwi group, the importance of the likes of Richie McCaw, Dan Carter, Jerome Kaino, Ma’a Nonu and several others. It’s undeniable that those men will be vital on Saturday, but the ‘new’ World Cup faces are crucial too.
Back in 2011, Smith had just come off the back of his first Super Rugby season with the Highlanders. Now he’s the best scrum-half in the world.
“It’s been pretty awesome,” says the 26-year-old of his journey. “I remember watching the last World Cup and how amazing it was. I was going into Super Rugby to put my best foot forward and I was able to get chosen for this amazing team.
“Time flies when you’re having fun and I’ve had some amazing times in this team. I had a little moment after the game the other day thinking ‘it’s here’, about how all the talk over the previous four years had been always about heading towards this.”
Prior to the 2011 World Cup victory, hooker Coles had intermittently impressed for the Hurricanes, featuring in Super Rugby but never managing to nail down a regular starting role.
His reputation at that point was as something of a hell raiser. He had been fined by New Zealand Rugby in 2009 for an alcohol-related incident with police, subsequently undertaking counselling for alcohol and behaviour management.
Coles watched on as a fan when McCaw lifted the trophy in 2011 and realised that something needed to change. The departure of a legend from the Hurricanes for the 2012 season presented him with an opportunity and the Paraparaumu man hasn’t looked back since.
“It was probably the departure of Horey (Andrew Hore), he was going to the Highlanders and I just thought to myself that I’d been on the bench for three years and always wanted to be an All Black.
“I remember just thinking when he departed, ‘Next year I’m going to be an All Black’. I just did everything in my power to give myself a chance and I achieved that. I just worked my arse off, made a lot of sacrifices, because I really wanted to be an All Black and eventually I got the chance.”
Wing sensation Milner-Skudder is a more recent addition to this New Zealand squad, having made his debut earlier this year. His rise has been incredibly rapid after just a single season of Super Rugby.
The 24-year-old is the latest proof of the quality of the ITM Cup as a breeding ground for the Kiwis. His five tries in five games at this World Cup so far have him looking a certainty for the Breakthrough Player of the Year award on Sunday.
“I’ve just heard about it and I’m blown away,” says Milner-Skudder, who is still adapting to the demands of speaking to the media. “I’m enjoying every minute of it at the moment and it’s a privilege to be nominated for that award.”
Cane, meanwhile, has been the heir to McCaw since his school days with Tauranga Boys, right through the New Zealand U20s, Bay of Plenty, and the Chiefs. He’s already part of the Kiwis’ leadership group at the age of 23.
He will provide back-up to the captain this weekend once again, but McCaw has been grooming his understudy all the time. Such is the way of the Kiwis, always planning ahead for further dominance.
“When I was at high school, he was pretty much the only openside I watched in the All Blacks’ number seven jersey,” says Cane. “Just to be in the same team I’ve probably picked up more over the last three or four years than I’ve realised.
“It’s more the little mini-conversations that you have at training, the things you pick up through watching that you learn rather than deep words of advice.”
Brodie Retallick took in the 2011 World Cup final victory in a fire station, a beer in hand before he headed into a superb first Super Rugby season with the Chiefs in 2012. One of his mates worked in the station and installed a giant screen for the occasion.
The towering lock’s international debut came in the summer of 2012 against Ireland, as he played in all three Tests on that tour led by Declan Kidney. Aaron Smith’s first foray into Test rugby came that summer too.
“It’s definitely a lot better to be out in the middle playing than sitting back and enjoying some cold ones,” says Retallick of actually being involved in the World Cup this time around.
As for Foster, he came on board as part of Steve Hansen’s coaching team in 2012, having earned his stripes as head coach of the Chiefs. He is predominantly focused on the backline and has little time for looking backwards this week.
The Kiwis won their most recent fixture against the Wallabies, but that victory was preceded by defeat in the Rugby Championship decider a week previously.
I think it’s a total clean sheet,” says Foster. “The lessons we learned from Sydney and Eden Park we’ve already applied in our game and put them into practice.
“It’s a great rivalry and clearly we’ve played each other a few times, but it’s pretty special to play in a World Cup final against them.”
Like Foster and the coaching staff, the likes of Smith, Milner-Skudder, Retallick, Cane and Coles won’t be dwelling on 2011 and the past too often this week. Their focus is on making their own history in the famous black shirt.
