Wayne Smith on the Women's Rugby World Cup & rugby as a whole in NZ

Former Black Ferns coach and All Blacks assistant, and a three-time Rugby World Cup winner, Wayne Smith joins Martin Devlin on the show after being named World Rugby Coach of the Year at the awards evening over the weekend.
Smith chats to Marty about the recent women's Rugby World Cup final where New Zealand beat England, the next steps for the women's game and rugby as a whole in New Zealand, the pay parity argument, and much more.
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[@ohnean1]

In another interview he said 'it was like taking a bunch of noisey, happy kids to Disney land and giving them the confidence to all jump on the roller coaster" ... what an awesome metaphor, and looks like they enjoyed the ride !!

[@Leoatwallacerockhole]

Absolutely!

[@leighfenigsohn3351]

Joy of the game.. this man knows how to read his players and spectactors..what a national treasure and the right man for our anxious times.. well done, Sir. Makes this Kiwigirl very proud of our tiny country.. and our uniqueness on the world stage.. stay true to ourselves Kiwis!

[@jrmop0965]

I wish Wayne Smith was in the coaching staff at the ABs. He makes Ian Foster look like a under 5s coach

[@perryboykett2985]

Lame

[@Brucemcleod2345]

Wayne Smith took the Black Ferns to success in 7 months while Foster is still figuring it out after 3 years

[@harleynuku7902]

Waynes the GOAT!

[@phillipmurray1724]

Why cant mens rugby be like that? Well some of you media fullas need to have a hard look at yourselves in the mirror and give yourselves an uppercut. All part of the pressure pot that builds up in the minds of the players and the expectation of the fans. They get smashed if they lose, put on a pedestal if they win. They're great one week shet the next. Blah blah blah. However this interview with Smithy was great. Interesting as to how he also went through a steep learning curve and adapted to suit the mindset of the wahine versus his years of ingrained experience with the tane. He recognised the difference quickly and the professor used that strength to implement the master plan. Less skilled coaches may have gone in there and tried to implement the boring old kaka we get with mens rugby and we would never have won the world cup.

[@mhoppy6639]

Great comment. England listener here - far higher quality of insight than that “good bad and rugby” dross on Amazon which is basically about where James Haskell got pissed last week. Ps I’m not interested James. Not. In. The. Slightest. I like what he said about it still being a game and the ‘joy’ having gone out of it. I watched a 1991 Eng / France game the other day - it was beautiful to watch a real exercise in joy for the crowd and players alike. In terms of professionalisation you see identikit England backs now - pumped up RL-influenced monsters who look for contact rather than gaps. Ok that’s generalised but it’s really only SH teams who go with people like Kolbin (sp) and Jordan. Ok, Scots have Darcey but you get the idea. Should the WR board look at something radical like amending subs rules (which has had a perverse effect on player size and stamina)?or even team numbers??? Or is it not even a problem and we all like this monster truck approach? 😂

[@KernowekTim]

'Sir' Wayne Smith, in this years honours list for sure.

[@whereareyougt]

Wow this sounds like Jedi training 101. Amazing insight into a rugby genius and how the Black Ferns embraced his philosophy.

[@duncanwcraig9668]

The Professor hates box kicks. Some one tell the ABs.

[@JB-nr8cl]

This man is Reinventing womans rugby

[@user-wv4xc1us6u]

National treasure imo.

[@brodieanderson3414]

GOAT ❤

[@gabegrace8333]

I wonder who organised the team victory song ...sung in Samoan

[@gabegrace8333]

Injured player Grace Booker missed RWC squad.because of injury..Ended up as video analyst

[@hmmmyeahnahdoh823]

Rugby 101 .... The Professor's Philosophy. Fozzie, time to enroll and yes homework is mandatory🙄. You don't get a rematch at the WC knockout stages.

[@Sunflower-dt6ev]

For astronomical rugby IQ & fun the ABs must need an extremely successful & breakdancing coach amirite?

[@Brucemcleod2345]

Wayne Smith took the Black Ferns to success in 7 months while Foster is still figuring it out after 3 years…mmm

[@clarke1319]

Not my wish to pour cold water on a good story however if Kennedy had blocked the penalty kick NZ would have been penalised. This was outlawed some 15-20 years ago.

[@sleati4911]

Never preface a statement with "Not my wish" then go on and say it anyway. It clearly is your wish otherwise you wouldn't have said it.

[@clarke1319]

@@sleati4911 Hello I hope you are well. I did actually give it a little thought as I thought how could I say this without triggering anyone. Clearly I failed in your case. I guess I could have just bluntly said it with the sentence beginning at "If Kennedy.....". If I had done this would you have come at me from another angle? Perhaps? I don't know. This whole Black Ferns year has most certainly been a marvelous story which I have been heavily invested in.... and the whole WC tournament in fact. I was at Eden Park that day watching the French penalty go wide of the post. I would have been horrified if Kennedy Simon had actually done what Wayne said she was thinking about doing, at least if it was heading over the crossbar. The reason being it would have almost certainly incurred another penalty 10m closer to the posts. So thems the facts of the matter. I mean I'm merely passing a comment on what Wayne said in the interview.

[@Sunflower-dt6ev]

Yeah, it's no secret the law was tightened up after the John Eales etc loophole blocks. I think Smithy was illustrating Simon's & the Ferns' mindset rather than a fact. He also said in another interview Simon even contemplated passing to Portia to initiate a counterattack but thought better of it lmfao. Also, in a further interview Mike Cron said after we stole the lineout to win the final he said to Smithy " it's a bloody wonder they didn't counterattack from there" - all in jest lol.

[@clarke1319]

@@Sunflower-dt6ev 🙃😶😀

[@Brucemcleod2345]

So Wayne Smith took the Black Ferns to success in 7 months while Foster is still figuring it out after 3 years…mmm