Ian Foster needs a chance to redeem himself. 

Yes, he is the wrong guy for the job. He should never have been chosen when there were excellent coaches like Scott Robertson and Dave Rennie apparently available at the time.  The whole selection process that chose Foster felt rigged, as if it as a sham from the start designed to choose the next guy in line, which was him.  Even Graham Henry said as much in a speech last month when he said NZR should’ve chosen Rennie.   

And yes, Foster has a terrible win rate so far. He has two wins, two losses and a draw in his first five tests which gives him the worst win rate by an all Blacks coach in 70 years. 

But he’s there now. NZR made the wrong call, they’ve got him till the end of next year and they now have to give him a chance to prove himself. 

Because maybe he’ll surprise us right? Sometimes coaches need a bit of time to bed in.   

But, a couple of things. 

First, NZR bosses need to have a think about the way they chose Foster and why they did and whether they really put the game first when they made that choice.  They lost Dave Rennie to the Wallabies.  They’re lucky Scott Robertson is still in the country and hopefully that lasts given there are new reports Wales wants to chase him. 

Secondly, the players need to pull their socks up.  The lack of discipline in that team is ridiculous.  If those boys were as worried about their rugby as they are about their red shoes and their blonde hair and getting smart on Instagram, they might be more proud of themselves today than they likely are. 

Still, they’ve still got a chance to grow out that blonde and those mullets and start looking like they’re on a pitch not a catwalk.  And Foster still has a chance to prove himself. 

So, over to them to do that.