The All Blacks have been hit by a bombshell on the eve of their departure for their South Africa tour, with assistant coach Leon MacDonald stepping down after differences of opinion with head coach Scott Robertson.
A New Zealand Rugby statement just before midday today said MacDonald decided to step down after discussions with Robertson.
"Discussions between All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson and MacDonald on their working approach have been taking place for several weeks, with the pair agreeing to mutually part ways," NZR high performance manager Chris Lendrum said in the statement.
The statement added that assistant coach Scott Hansen (defence) and fellow assistant Tamati Ellison (contact skills), would take on MacDonald's duties for the rest of the season.
MacDonald helped with the backs' attack alongside Jason Holland.
“You’ve got two great coaches who have been having some robust but constructive discussions on the approach to drive the All Blacks over a period of time now. Ultimately, they have made a brave decision that they believe is best for the team.
“Leon is a highly regarded coach and has made a huge contribution to rugby across a number of teams in New Zealand, and we’d love to have him back in our system in the future. For now, I’d like to thank him on behalf of NZR and wish him all the very best.”
All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson said: “Leon and I have been having some honest conversations with each other for a little while now. As coaches we have differing views and both agreed it wasn’t working. Leon and I both care deeply about the All Blacks and we believe we’ve made a decision that’s best for this team.
“There’s a huge amount of respect and appreciation for Leon in the group and the work he’s put in to get us to this point in our journey. As a team we have acknowledged that contribution and our focus now needs to be on South Africa, it’s going to be two tough Test matches over there.”
Robertson and MacDonald coached together at the Crusaders before MacDonald left to return to Tasman. He later agreed to become head coach of the Blues before he was announced as an assistant to Robertson at the All Blacks last year.
After the All Blacks' defeat to Argentina in Wellington recently, which followed a narrow 2-0 Test series win over England, there have been question marks about the messaging the players have been receiving but the MacDonald development was unexpected, if not unprecedented.
John Plumtree and Brad Mooar lost their jobs as assistant coaches to Robertson's predecessor Ian Foster after Ireland's series win over the All Blacks in 2022 but those moves were related to longer-term performance issues.
The All Blacks are second in the Rugby Championship behind the Springboks after bouncing back from their loss in Wellington to thrash the Pumas 42-10 at Eden Park at the weekend.
More to come
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