Scott Robertson’s weird and wonderful month of March ended in more mixed emotions as the Crusaders outclassed the Reds on Friday night.
The breakdancing Crusaders supremo was unveiled as the next All Blacks coach 10 days ago, a coveted job ranked not too far away from prime minister in rugby-mad New Zealand.
But the catch is that ‘Razor’ doesn’t actually get his hands on the team until after the Rugby World Cup in November.
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The much maligned Ian Foster has been given the opportunity to see out his contract before handing the reins to Robertson.
It puts Robertson in an awkward spot as the public and media alike understandably quiz him for his opinions and plans as the national coach-elect.
“Is it a hard balance for you?” Nick McArdle asked Robertson on Stan Sport’s post-game coverage at Suncorp Stadium.
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“I mean, you’re probably getting questions like that all the time. I don’t know how comfortable you are about talking about that because every time you talk about it, in a way, it kind of undermines what Ian Foster is doing. How do you approach that? How do you deal with that for the next five or six months because everyone wants to talk to you about it.”
Robertson didn’t really know what to say.
“Oh, look, I just congratulated and I don’t really say anymore about it,” he replied.
“I sort of, there’s a bit of loyalty around respect (towards Foster) and saying, OK, that’s great around the players, with the staff and let them get on with it and be successful as they can at the World Cup.”
Robertson joked that he should have put a Noosa surfing clause in his All Blacks contract and that he was looking forward to breakdancing every four years at World Cups.
“It’s been a big month in that regard and the boys get to stay (in Christchurch) and we don’t have to live in a castle somewhere. So, no, life’s good.”
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The defending champion Crusaders are now third on the ladder with a 4-2 record although Robertson was far from happy with a scratchy performance in Brisbane.
He also watched All Blacks prop George Bower limp off the field in the latest of a horror run of injuries.
“Hopefully it’s not too bad, but there’s 17 guys out,” Robertson said.
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