Scott Robertson

Whereas now, well, I mean, they might end up on the sharp end, but they're going to have to work first because they don't have any alternative.

And I think if, like, if you're, if you look at that sort of narrative setting, which was a real aspect that Scott, you know, I'd associate with Scott Robertson and is something that O'Gara has emphasized, you go on, like, how do you, how do you reset the narrative now? You weren't saying this at the beginning of the season, so now you've got to go and you've got to pick everybody up.

You sort of have to get them fired up to go again, or you've got to get different guys to pick up their performances because... with the best will in the world, there's got to be guys in their squad, their best players who are looking to play well in a different jersey because there's a World Cup coming up.

And, you know, these fellas want to be in the World Cup squad.

For them, they're just going to have to sit through, get through the regular season, and that's when, for them, the season truly starts, is can they deal with three games in a row, winning three games in a row, and if they were able to get to the big dance one more time, which isn't a fait accompli because there's some really good squads that have been named on both sides of the Tasman, but definitely here on this side of the Tasman, then it's about dealing with that one week, the lessons that they have learnt over the course of all of these near misses or last year big miss you know that that's what is going to be spoken about they need to be aware of it they need to be conscious of it and they need to make sure that they are ready to deal with it when and if that time comes

now if i'm looking down and glancing here people because i've got all the squads on my phone here rather than write them down a piece of paper okay so i'm not being rude i've done the same thing marty so you're fine brother don't worry about it i'm doing the same thing every time we move on yeah so as far as the crusaders go Nigel, would it be fair to say that there is as much interest in the guy in charge as there is in this squad? Given the fact that of what happened with Scott Hanson, with Scott Robertson and everything else, you know, the judgments around him, were they fair or not? What kind of a coach is he? He's now got the head coaching role.

I think that there's as much fascination in that, in those stories going into this season.

Well, one, he's a good coach.

I mean, he has been proven.

He's been in a coaching role for a fair while now, and he has been proven to be a very good coach.

I repeat, irrespective of what you thought of the final outcome, the All Blacks were winning a reasonable amount of tests under Scott Robertson, and Scott Hansen essentially...

the head coach, by the sounds of it, given the way that it was described at some point.

He's been a standout performer in the NPC for Otago.

And he was obviously part of that All Blacks environment under Scott Robertson.

First time being caught up under Renz, though, which means they clearly rate him beef.

They rate him.

Look, just a final word on the numbers, because if everyone who is selected and we're talking about a couple of new names there, but or returning names, for example, if everyone gets a run on tour, that'll bring the number of players used this year to 55.

Scott Robertson used 42 and 45 in his two years in the job.

55, well, I mean, you're starting to talk RASI figures there in terms of the number that have been picked for the Springboks.

How much of that, Campbell, do you just put down to the fact that they went on a tour of South Africa that had a very high attrition rate?

I'd say that the fact that they've used 50 players this year and they've used...

And Scott Robertson used about 58 in his first couple of years.

I'd say there's very unlikely...

Yeah, why add 50? Why add another one, right? Yeah,

Agenda 2.

Boys, could the All Blacks mounting injury toll be a real silver lining, exposing more blokes than probably what Dave initially thought? I think Dave Rennie's used more players than Scott Robertson had in his two years.

I think it was

50-plus, Lash.