A noted New Zealand sports writer is calling for Noeline Taurua to swap jobs with Scott Robertson
A noted New Zealand sports writer is calling for Noeline Taurua to swap jobs with Scott Robertson

OPINIONSportsabout 9 hours ago

Why don’t Scott Robertson and Noeline Taurua just swap jobs?

Production editor
A noted New Zealand sports writer is calling for Noeline Taurua to swap jobs with Scott Robertson
A noted New Zealand sports writer is calling for Noeline Taurua to swap jobs with Scott Robertson

A radical last-minute proposal to solve New Zealand’s two biggest coaching conundrums at once.

We don’t have a lot of time, so I’m going to make this quick. News is breaking today that Scott Robertson is set to be sacked as All Blacks coach following a “damning review” of his performance, with many predicting Jamie Joseph will be announced as his replacement. Before any contracts are signed, I want to put forward an alternative solution: a first-of-its-kind coach swap between two of New Zealand’s major sporting codes. 

The All Blacks get: Dame Noeline Taurua

“Dame Noels” had a challenging 2025 after a drawn out and deeply confusing saga in which she was stood down from her role as Silver Ferns coach before being reinstated 51 days later. This administrative stand-off was triggered by an internal review detailing a growing dissatisfaction among some of her players, whose criticisms were ultimately boiled down by the court of public opinion to her being too much of a hard-arse. This type of ruthless mentality is what many All Blacks fans believe has been missing from the team since Scott Robertson became coach.

The Silver Ferns get: Scott Robertson

In contrast, “Razor” Robertson’s reputation is that of a chilled-out entertainer, well known for exuding the type of good vibes which seem to be actively discouraged in his current role. During his successful tenure as Crusaders coach, his signature move was to breakdance on the pitch following the presentation of the Super Rugby trophy. This style of coaching would appear far better suited to international netball, which is played on hardwood courts.

The result

Critics of this proposal will say that Scott Robertson doesn’t know as much about netball as Noeline Taurua, and vice versa. This is true. For it to progress any further would require us as a nation to lean fully into the notion that leadership in the modern day is mostly about vibes. It seems the Netball New Zealand and NZ Rugby reviews into their respective national team coaches could both be summarised the same way: the vibes are off. Get them right, and all of our problems will be solved.

More Reading
    Our intelligence isn't artificial. Neither is yours.
    Anna Rawhiti-Connell

    93% of you trust information from The Spinoff. That makes us enormously proud. It also means we keep working hard to maintain it. The trust we've earned is why The Spinoff does not and will not publish work that has used generative AI. The words you read on The Spinoff are written by humans, edited by humans and, as Spinoff members show us every day, supported by humans.

    Various estimates suggest up to half of all internet traffic is now AI bots. AI slop is everywhere. Trust isn't built through algorithms or automated at scale, it's earned. That's what we're protecting when we make decisions about AI, but we need your help. AI and big tech companies represent an existential threat. Not just to us, and to journalism, but to creativity and human understanding. Please help keep The Spinoff independent, local and, most of all, incredibly human by becoming a Spinoff member today.

    Our future depends on funding from readers