New Zealand Rugby confirmed the full-time appointment of Joe Schmidt as assistant coach part of the All Blacks coaching team. The New Zealand Rugby (NZR) Board has also given their full support behind Ian Foster as All Blacks head coach until the World Cup 2023.
Ian Foster, alongside NZR chair Stewart Mitchell and chief executive Mark Robinson, fronted the media at a press conference in Auckland on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Robinson and NZR general manager of professional rugby Chris Lendrum met with Foster to finalise conversations around where things sat after the first five All Blacks Tests of the year.
A recommendation that was agreed upon was for Joe Schmidt to be elevated to full-time Assistant coach.
"Joe Schmidt has been on my radar, probably for a couple of years," said Foster.
"We flagged at the start of this year that his role was to join us after the Irish series as an independent selector to replace Grant Fox and in addition, he was going to do some opposition analysis work and work alongside myself in the strategy area.
"We started that after the Irish series and delighted with how that's going. I have a great relationship with Joe."
Schmidt was initially temporarily drafted into the All Blacks coaching team ahead of the first test against Ireland after All Blacks head coach Ian Foster, forwards coach John Plumtree, and defence coach Scott McLeod all tested positive for Covid-19, forcing them into isolation, however, he did not travel to South Africa.
Schmidt was Ireland’s head coach from 2013 until 2019, leading them to Grand Slam glory in 2018, two other Six Nations titles, and their first-ever wins over New Zealand.
