Is Graham Henry the root of the problem?

Question

Some other people have commented that John Mitchell's contract was not renewed and Henry's contract was, despite the poor WC result.

I can only equivocate, but my feeling is that the NZRU and their agenda is based on protecting and advancing the AB brand, possibly above what is best for the All Black team.

It is likely John Mitchell lost his coaching job because he based the team in Melbourne, away from the media circus of the WC in 2003 and in the process, "tarnishing" the PR image of the All Blacks. In contrast, the 2007 WC/Adidas campaign was a PR dream before the ABs untimely exit.

I think the NZRU took the management of public relations agenda heavily into account when deciding on post-WC coaches.

Also, I think it was Chris Moffett that said that some of the NZRU should be sacked for agreeing to resting the players during the super 14 - possibly Henry's re-selection was to avoid a loss of face by the NZRU?

Would Henry ever be sacked with the incumbent NZRU?

Answer 1

Of course, he is the problem.

He had downgraded the AB's statues, more less anyone who play S14 well can be an AB, just look at how many new ABs we had under his coaching compare with all other AB coaches.

Unfortunately, he was retained by those stupid NZRU management and let Robbie gone to Australia, now if we sack Henry, we have no one to replace him.

Hope he can pull something out of the bag otherwise if we lose to OZ this coming weekend, all the silverware will be gone.

Answer 2

He will not be sacked because his mates in hq would have to go to!He does not coach the players instead he uses alot of so called experts,hence the cost of running the ABs goes up.Even less money for club rugby,another story.

He never has coached all ways inherited good teams,unlike deans who coaches,as you see on any TV clips hes there training with players and gaining there respect a true coach.

rugby iss a dieing game in NZ and it will not come alive until we have some changes at the board room level.

Answer 3

give the guy a break,if you have a problem with Henry,ship off to OZ,he's a great coach and done wonders for NZ.Just because of a few average games everyone has suddenly forgot the amount of silverware he has brought home?

He's pretty much starting from ground zero due to the lack of depth we have in the team this year.Give him a few more games and the AB's will be the force they once were.

Answer 4

Grahmn henry is the problem,he just cant coach a team,he inherited a good Auckland team back in 1996 with the likes of zinny ,michael jones,jonah lomu and sean fitzpatrick just to name a few and joe bloggs off the street could of coached that team as it was such a good team,look at the All Blacks when he took over from John Mitchel ,John Mitchel made that team so when Henry  got that team and started to win game after game everyone thought what a good coach we have here but the hard work was done by John Mitchel,now look at what happened at the world cup,judge me by the world cup resultswas henrys words to the public ,well yes grahmn we are judgeing you and you lost  and yet you still would not stand down and to the  NZRU, what a disgrace you guys are,by letting the best coach in New Zealand fall away to aussie and now look ,the guy you let go is destroying us what a joke the NZRU are ,you guys are a bunch of clowns ,and Henry,Hanssen and Smiths comments in the paper is we have lost a lot of experience players who have gone overseas and we are rebuilding,what aload of ****,look at Robbie Deans hes rebuilding too,more than the All Blacks infact and not only has he made that Australian team a champion team ,i will even go as far to say Australia will win the 2011 World Cup and it wont be against the All Blacks itll probably be against South Africa,so read it and weap you  All Black supporters ,the NZRU and Grahmn Henry are destroying the All Black mantle and soon the All Black aura they once had ,will just be a past remembrance

Answer 5

Yes I think he is passed coaching international rugby his words judge me by my world cup campian well he failed big time we have let the better coach go across the tasman now we will pay for it the all blacks have'nt got a show in the world cup .

Answer 6

Blame it solely on NZRU for the talent drain. It boggles the mind to see the AB jerseys given out to just about anybody!

How much talent have we lost in the last 2-3 years? Chris Jack, Byron Kelleher, Jerry Collins, Carl Hayman, Xavier Rush just to name a few of the best we had!

What do we have at the moment in BLACK? Sione Lauaki...Sivivatu...Andy Ellis...Leon MacDonald?????

NZRU shoud have come up with something to prevent our best from leaving..Overseas clubs can pay over the roof for the best and a country can't pay enough to keep them!!!

And Graham Henry..be a man and live by your words..JUDGE ME ON THE WC..well you failed..or did the players failed you?? They were picked by you and NZRU!

The difference here is, with any other sports in any other country, if the team fails to deliver,guess who is the first to go??? Oh..but not here not now!

NZRU doesn't have the guts to sack Henry or to admit that they got it wrong.

NZRU is not for the supporters, they are for the money..big time!

Answer 7

I have to be honest. I thought Henry should've been given a second chance, because leading in to the RWC he had a really good record. But for some reason, I think the RWC loss has got to him. He's not the same coach, and he certainly isn't making the best choices in terms of men on the field. I'm not into putting potentially good players on the paddock, we need to put the best players there, ones we know can do the job. People with proven ability, and I don't think he is neccessarily doing that for the AB's. Yeah yeah yeah, some of these guys played well in the Super 14, but I think we are seeing that this formula does not translate into a highly effectively AB.

Henry has changed, even the way he talks to the media is different. He was a stoic person before, and now we see him jumping around when the AB's score. Not the same man I reckon.

Answer 8

No.

Easy target for those frustrated at loosing three games - two tri-nations and one against the French last year.

Player drain is killing the ABs, so many young guns being thrown into the mix, to expect them to step up immediately is unfair.

lot of tests this year, lets hope we get it right for the tour north. Dropping the 4 coaches currently trying to get the young fellas on track will not aid AB rugby.

Answer 9

No Henry wouldn't be sacked, mainly because who would replace him. The next best kiwi S14 coach was the Auckland coach who has returned to Oz.

I do feel that Henry should have been shafted after what happened to Mitchell. Now we have Deans. Remember he held off making a decision to coach Australia until after the AB selection. He gave the NZRU every chance and they blew it.

Answer 10

Definately not.   It's player attitude/dicipline  that have cost the AB's.     A coach cannot be held accountable for these or for the lack of basic skills and on field thinking that has come to the fore in NZ rugby.

Answer 11

I hope so because 2 b honesty I really dnt give a stuff about Graham Henry or John Mitchell because they certainly dnt deserve 2 be the AB's Coach......why? well its obvious they suck. I'd be totally supportive if Robbie Deans had the position .....why? because he has the brains 2 keep the wins coming. & if his Super 14 team could win the Super 14 4 how many years in row, then just imagine what he could do with the 'Men In Black'......NZRU has made a huge mistake......

Answer 12

I think the last loss was all about the coaches, as Smith has come out and said, the game plan was ridiculous... running the ball from our own line etc was brainless, we played and acted like a team that thought they were second best and needed to play high risk rugby to win, not at all like a confident AB team that assumes control of a game and strangles the opposition like that normally do... they look like a team thats *overcoached* theyve been told how to play and will play that way no moatter whats happening... very much like what happened against france in THAT game... in my opinion we still have a team of some of the best players in the game (Dan Carter was absolutely brilliant, back to the best he has been) but theyve been poorly coached and not given an opportunity to get together as a team (which at the end of the day is what the game is all about).

Answer 13

No, Henry will not be sacked, more's the pity. You know, the biggest joke in world rugby is the NZRFU. The second biggest is Graham Henry.  He went to Wales and soon turned from Messiah to Pariah. He blew it!! He took what was arguably the best ever Lions team ever to Australia, and they got thrashed by the Wallabies - he blew it!!!  He took the best team in world rugby to the world cup last year and got thrown out in the quater finals - he blew it.  Mr Henry's approach is typical schoolmaster - "I am the boss and you will do it my way" (or you will get rotated hee hee).  I think Steve Hansen could do a reasonable job with the A B's, given a chance.  He has to do what he is told at the moment as he is only one of Henry"s minnows.  The only other real option that would be left to the NZRFU would be to find out how much it would cost to buy Gatland out of his Wales contract. We have lost Deans - i doubt that he would wish to return with the current regime there - so there are few options left - looks like we are left with the crumbs!!!

Answer 14

No he's not! We can bag this guy until the cows come home, but! there's 15 men who go out on that field not the coach, it's up to them to do the rest. The tools are there they just need to use them to their advantage.

Answer 15

mitchell got shafted those clowns at the rugby union set the bench mark if you don't bring the world cup home your fired and that's what happened to mithch and Rubin thorn.there was only one option for Henry and that was to resign after the world cup bla bla bla the nzru showed Robbie the door and the best coach in the world heads of to oz what the h**l was the nzru thinking.Robbie deans knows half the all blacks thoughts now working for the old enemy in 5 games as coach he has the wallabies which is made up of p[layers from some of the worst performing super 14 teams smashing the abs imagine what they are going to be like at the next world cup go Robbie

Answer 16

yes he is

Answer 17

i just rewatched the blacks/ roos game. the kiwis made too many mistakes. period. australia was on top of their game, and playing the way they were, they would have beaten anybody. id say they were playing at the same level as the blacks and boks played in the last game, except the kiwis weren't playing at that level.

too many mistakes. too many penalties. too many missed tackles. an inability to capitalise on thier possession. and they had lots and lots of possession.

the roos happened to use the little possession they had. like south africa in the last game, they played epic defense.

you can NEVER blame the coach for the inability of the players on the field. once the coaching is done during the week it is up to the players to pick up the ball and make things happen on gameday.

quite frankly the blacks sucked on the pitch. im not sure you can blame the coach for that.

Answer 18

I wrote in The Christchurch Press the February before the last world cup that the AB's would not win under Henry.  Check his past history world-wide. With every team he has coached, including in Europe, his teams have consistently won the unimportant everyday games and lost the big important games. Nothing more needs to be said. I will now predict if he is still the caoch come the next world cup the AB's will not get past the quarter finals.

Answer 19

No.  the players should take some heat for the lost as well.  What I think is going to happen is that this Henry/Deans debate will turn into an Auckland/Canturbury debate.

In all fairness, this is just one game.  Deans still has a long way to go to prove he's a top international coach.  If Henry was sacked now, who would replace him? Lam? Grant Fox? Crowley?

Answer 20

I think every one should get over it.. we are stuck with Henry for now. NZRU wont sack him coz they know that there is no one else is good enuf to take his place. Some are sayin he aint good enuf. Look at his record in the last 4 years. Cant win everytime we go out an play. No use sayin we want Deans or Gatland coz they have secured long term contracts. Personally I think Deans should of got the job myself but he didnt. Our loss Australia's gain. MEH!!!

Answer 21

YES he is a major source, along with the NZRFU who wouldn't terminate his contract which would have meant there resignations also. The other issue is the lack of trust, how can players trust an administration who shows no loyalty to them,  whose team plan is predictable and now smacks of defeat. Cut him loose bring in someone with a 'fresh' approach, who?, wait and see who applies.

Answer 22

I feel that all the blame for what is now happening with the All Blacks must  be on the NZR. Tew, Hobbs and Co. These are the guys that put Henry and Co back in as Coaches of the All Blacks. They must resign on mass as they all think they are bigger than the game. Does anyone have any confidence in Henry and Co coaching the All Backs at the next World cup. "Like h**l" . How can Robbie Deans talk to his brother in law, Jock Hobbs after what has happened. I am sure there has been much tension in other of the Deans family.

Answer 23

I don't think he's going to be sacked yet, its been 2 games in a row given but I think a lot of the blame rests with the players too.

We've got a pretty slack side i reckon, and I wasn't really that surprised with the result since we've really been relying on carter for too much.

Too late to call Deans back, it would be bigger than the SBW controversy, just imagine the headlines if he suddenly turned and left Australia.

I think everyone's forgetting how successful the All blacks were until the huge player drain, and we're really missing players like Colins at the breakdown, Chris Jack in the lineout...

I think you could compare the current all blacks to the weather we're having- no sunny days in sight

Answer 24

Graham Henry appears to be the root of the problem and he is certainly not making the right moves to correct the problems that keep just bubbling to the top. He is the coach and responsible for the direction on the paddock. What was dished up last Saturday was a disgrace for a so called experienced rugby team. We were beaten by a clearly better side although at one stage we were capable of pulling off the win. This would have been a travesty of justice as the AB's were running around like chooks with their heads cut off. It was sad!

Where is the problem. Tactics and selections. We have given up on the lineouts - just hoofing the pill down the field willy nilly because no one wants to front at the lineout is just a real bad joke for an AB team. This includes the coaches otherwise they would change this tactic. It has been going on for sometime now. It has to stop. Get the position on the field, attack their lineout and get some people in there that can do the job. The lineout is a shocker- no skills at all shown.Balls not in straight, thrown to the wrong place - the group needs to get with it. It makes for very average results like it is. The coaches have been saying there is work to do in the lineouts. They have been saying this for the past 2 years - but nothing changes. The rest of the play, running from the back stems from this failing. The opposition teams know this is the only option other than hoofing it so it gets returned - invariably with interest. The other problem is the result of now not having the real speed merchants to the breakdowns - everyone is scattered across the field and at the tackle only one or two of the AB's show up to join. We get cleaned out and proceed to the next stop where it happens again. I know the spread of the players across the ground helps in the defence but it is not attacking. They were cleaning us out all over the place by concentrating on getting as many as possible to the breakdown. It was a subtle change which was not picked up by our team. Once again the fault of the coaches and the leadership. Get the lineouts and the tackle ball right and we are back in business. Fail there again and bye bye Bledisloe