'We're Going Backwards': Sir Graham Henry’s Plan to Fix the All Blacks

There are debates, and then there are moments where the curtain gets ripped back and you see exactly where the fault lines are. This is one of those.

When Sir Graham Henry - Rugby World Cup winning coach with the All Blacks - and former New Zealand Rugby chair Brent Impey start pulling in opposite directions, you’re not dealing with theory. You’re dealing with the future of NZR.

And Sir Ted wastes absolutely no time getting to the point surrounding the state of rugby in New Zealand.

“I'd say we’ve got more depth now than we've had for a long time,” he told Martin Devlin on the DSPN.

Sounds positive, right? It doesn’t last.

“[But] I don't think the competition [Super Rugby] is sufficiently strong enough.”

And then he goes even further.

“I don't think it's a foundation for producing a world class international team… I don't like the competition. I think the competition is weak.”

That’s as blunt as it gets. This isn’t about tweaking formats or trialling new rules. This is about whether Super Rugby Pacific, as it currently exists, is actually doing the job it’s supposed to do for the All Blacks.

There are few rugby minds with as much expertise and authority as Sir Graham on what it takes to turn the All Blacks into World Cup winners. He coached them to the 2011 title and planted the seed for a coaching tree that didn’t just succeed, but defined an era.

“There is an isolation policy by World Rugby for New Zealand Rugby… we're isolated geographically, and we're getting isolated rugby wise.

“We play Australia, who are reasonably weak to be fair… so we're not getting the competition we require, I don't think to be the best in the world.”

Now, if that’s the diagnosis, what’s the fix? Henry’s answer is as controversial as it is clear. “My solution would be that we allow All Blacks to play overseas.”

“There'll be some criteria there… maybe 20 tests and allow them to play overseas.” Controlled. Structured. But open.

“What that does is it develops rugby players… it not only develops them as rugby players, but develops them as people.”

And then he leans into the global comparison that keeps coming up.

“Look at South Africa.”

And when pushed on whether that model can work for New Zealand?

“Come on, Martin… get real.

“They [the Springboks] are the best team in the world by a considerable margin… most of their international players play overseas.”

In Sir Ted’s world, you let overseas clubs pay the players, you develop them globally, and you bring them back better.

Impey doesn’t fully agree, and looks at the subject from an economical perspective.

“There has been no pay increase for New Zealand Super players since I think 2016, 2017… and that's because there's just not the money there.

“When I joined New Zealand Rugby in 2012, we had a $100 million revenue and $100 million in costs. When I left in 2022, we had $260 million revenue and $260 million of costs… it’s a very, very large beast to continue to feed.

“The television deal is a substantial part of that revenue. If you start weakening the competition by allowing top New Zealand players not to play in that competition, you’re going to get less money from Sky, and down you go.

“South Africa have to some degree solved that issue by allowing French and Japanese clubs to pay for their top players. Their broadcast revenue is a significantly different model to what ours is.”

So while Henry sees opportunity, Impey sees risk. And the latter shifts the conversation to something just as important. Development.

“One of the problems in New Zealand Rugby is that those young players aren't playing enough. They’re really holding tackle bags.

“The more critical issue is within the ecosystem, we do not have enough football, enough rugby for those younger players who are coming through to actually play.”

So now you’ve got two arguments running side by side. Henry believes there’s not enough quality at the top, while Impey claims there isn’t enough opportunity underneath.

One side feels opening the doors and embracing the global game is the way to go. The other? Protect the product, protect the revenue, or risk the whole system. And somewhere in the middle of all that sits the All Blacks.

Because this isn’t really about Super Rugby. It’s about whether the most successful team in the sport’s history and the biggest brand can reclaim top spot.

Right now, even the people who built that success can’t agree on how to do it.