Ex-All Blacks coach’s classy response to Hansen’s ‘we were robbed’ World Cup final whine

After Steve Hansen’s moaning that the All Blacks were robbed in the 2023 World Cup final loss to South Africa, the man who went down with the ship – Ian Foster – has chosen the higher moral ground in reflecting on his final game in charge.

Foster was already a dead man walking when he arrived at World Cup, with Scott Robertson in place to take over after the tournament. That led to muted expectations, but the All Blacks made it to the final.

A red card to Sam Cane in the 29th minute – while Siya Kolisi escaped an upgrade to red for a similar incident – cut fans deeply. There was a chalked-off try to Richie Mo’unga for a knock-on in the lead-up but missed shots at goal from the No.10 and Jordie Barrett also contributed to the Boks’ 12-11 win.

Ian Foster, Head Coach of New Zealand, looks on as he walks past The Webb Ellis Cup during the Rugby World Cup Final match between New Zealand and South Africa at Stade de France on October 28, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by Michael Steele – World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)

In the immediate aftermath, Foster said the Kiwis had  “already sent a file into World Rugby [on the performance of referee Wayne Barnes] to get them to make a few comments on… Hopefully they do.”

Last week Hansen, who now works alongside Foster at Toyota Verblitz in Japan, reignited the flames on the DSPN podcast.

“This is a team that should have won the World Cup, they were robbed of the World Cup as far as I’m concerned with some poor decisions that were out of their control which cost them a World Cup,” Hansen said.

Foster appeared on the same podcast this week and distanced himself from his mate’s assessment.

“I go back to it with a lot of pride with where the team got to and to get to that final on the big stage and get so close I was actually so proud with that but also incredibly disappointed that we didn’t cross the line,” Foster said.

“I like to focus more on things that we could control, things that maybe we could have done a little bit better and so I think you kid yourself that we were robbed you end up becoming a little bit cynical.”

Foster believes the All Blacks have to look within, rather than at the performance of Barnes and his fellow officials.

“You end up blaming other people for it so for me, we did what we had to do but we weren’t quite good enough to get the result,” he said.

“And that’s the game and that’s probably what World Cup finals are about – they’re about tension and drama and you’d have to say I delivered that pretty well.”

Foster took a short break from coaching before returning in Japan.

“I gave myself a decent window of time after the World Cup just to wind down and figure out what was next and I thought club land was the way to go rather than looking at the international stage for a while, particularly with a real desire not to coach against the All Blacks for at least for the near future.

“So that’s why I am where I am and don’t regret it for a moment.”

Foster also spoke with dignity about the messy end to his time with the team. He was clearly hurt at the time and made that clear to his employers, but is choosing to look back with pride.

“There was a lot going on in my time as an All Black coach. And, certainly, there were pressures there that were probably a little bit unique to perhaps what other All Black coaches have had to go through, when you look at COVID and that sort of stuff, and then you look at other things that happened.

“You spend a lot of time reflecting on that and looking at the way you handle things. But to know that we had a full backing of a group of men that wanted to go and achieve something pretty special…

“I think we left the All Blacks in a good place. I think there was a lot of younger players coming through in that World Cup that I think will be there at the next World Cup. That probably got a little bit lost in translation at the end of 2023, I think, that this was an All Black team that had the ability to really grow and get even bigger, bigger and better.”

As for the personal hurt, Foster said: “The key thing is I’ve moved on.

“I think it’s really important not to let things that you can’t control, control you. There were things that happened, people acted in ways that I disagreed with.

“I think people were pretty clear that I did disagree with them. And that’s all you can really do – you’ve just got to say your piece and then just go and do what you need to do.

“I was pretty determined to not let other people’s decisions change the person that I was. And so have I moved on? Yes, I have. Have I forgotten everything? Probably no, I haven’t.”