Ardie Savea’s delayed arrival for the All Blacks’ tour of South Africa sends the wrong message, according to New Zealand Herald rugby writer Gregor Paul.
The All Blacks captain will miss the opening three matches of the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour against the Stormers (7 August), Sharks (11 August) and Vodacom Bulls (15 August) before joining the squad ahead of the first Test against the Springboks at Ellis Park on 22 August.
Explaining the decision when naming his 44-man squad, coach Dave Rennie said Savea had been playing and training almost continuously since January 2025. The loose forward featured throughout the 2025 Super Rugby season before moving straight into Japan Rugby League One with the Kobe Steelers. After returning to New Zealand in June this year, he immediately resumed international duty, playing all three of the All Blacks’ Nations Championship Tests in July.
In a New Zealand Herald column, Paul argued that the decision highlights a failure to properly manage the All Blacks’ most influential player.
“For the captain to not be with the team in South Africa until August 12 because it has been deemed imperative for him to take a break from playing to mentally and physically reset feels like there has been a monumental failure in athlete management,” Paul wrote.
He believes Savea’s absence also undermines the significance of the tour.
“The optics of the skipper not travelling with everyone else – and not being on the ground – don’t look good to fans and stakeholders on multiple fronts.”
Paul pointed to comments Rennie made after consulting former All Blacks coach John Hart, who guided New Zealand to a famous series victory in South Africa in 1996.
“We need to be all there. If you are not playing, you are on the field helping [with the] warm-up or you are in the stands sitting cheering your mates on. I think that was essential for us.”
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Paul argued that Savea’s absence runs counter to that philosophy.
“There is a practical impact, too: Savea training on his own in Wellington means he won’t be visible and present – able to talk with teammates, coaches and management.”
While Rennie insists the rest period will ensure Savea is fresh for the four-Test series against the Springboks, Paul believes NZ Rugby should never have allowed the situation to develop.
“There is no escaping that this is remiss, bordering on reckless for NZ Rugby to have let their best player play so much rugby in the last three years that Rennie was left with no choice but to find a window somewhere in this year’s bulging All Blacks calendar in which Savea could recuperate and recondition,” he wrote.
Photo: Phil Walter/Getty Images
The post ‘Ardie’s absence exposes poor management’ appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Ardie Savea’s delayed arrival for the All Blacks’ tour of South Africa sends the wrong message, according to New Zealand Herald rugby writer Gregor Paul.
The post ‘Ardie’s absence exposes poor management’ appeared first on SA Rugby magazine. Read More
