2024 All Blacks Coaching group contains strong Canterbury contingent

The newly announced All Blacks coaching group for 2024 has a strong Canterbury flavour, with all four Assistant Coaches spending time in Canterbury during their rugby careers.

Jason Ryan (Sydenham RFC), Scott Hansen (Linwood RFC), Jason Holland and Leon MacDonald (Burnside RFC) have all been confirmed today as the new All Blacks Assistant Coaches, with new Head Coach Scott Robertson (Sumner RFC) looking to past experience and success when choosing his supporting cast.

Jason Ryan’s appointment continues a long working relationship between the pair, with Ryan’s coaching journey starting out with his beloved Sydenham, before joining Robertson and the Canterbury NPC team in 2013, then progressing through the ranks to the Crusaders before Ryan’s appointment to the existing All Blacks coaching group last year.

It is a similar story for Linwood’s Scott Hansen, who first worked with Robertson with Canterbury in 2013 and 2014, before stints overseas with Leicester, Kobelco, the Sunwolves and Japan. Hansen returned to Canterbury with the Crusaders in 2020.

Current Hurricanes Head Coach Jason Holland was an Assistant Coach with Canterbury from 2012-2015 upon returning to New Zealand from Ireland.

Holland will be tasked with assisting Leon MacDonald who, unlike the other coaches, did not begin his coaching career with Canterbury but instead is remembered as an enterprising fullback for Burnside and Canterbury NPC teams of the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, ensuring that the Canterbury connection remains amongst the newly confirmed coaching group.