Wayne Smith, the highly respected former All Blacks coach, has come out of retirement to join New Zealand’s women’s coaching set-up in a desperate bid to help turn their World Cup hopes around.

Widely regarded as one of the best coaches in the game, Smith was part of the All Blacks set-up for 16 years and played a major role in the side’s 2011 and 2015 men’s World Cup triumphs.  

Nicknamed ‘The Professor’ for his tactical rugby brains, he will act as a technical coach to the Black Ferns, whose hopes of defending their World Cup crown on home soil hang by a thread after a turbulent few months. 

Glenn Moore’s side endured a winless northern tour last year, twice losing heavily to world No 1 side England and world No 3 side France. The Red Roses returned a 99-27 aggregate scoreline over two Tests against the reigning world champions to install themselves as favourites to win the World Cup.

Off the pitch, a review into the culture of the New Zealand women’s set-up has been launched after allegations of bullying surfaced late last year. The findings are due to be announced next week.

Smith revealed that he had been inspired to come out of retirement by a commitment he made to his late friend, Laurie O’Reilly, a women’s rugby trailblazer and the first coach of the New Zealand women’s national team. 

“I indicated to him before he passed away that I would help the women’s rugby in whatever way I could, and now I get the chance,” Smith said in a statement

“The coaching group is all on the same page around the type of game we need to play to win the World Cup. There is a lot of work to be done to get there but it is going to be exhilarating.”

It will not be the first time Smith has linked up with the Black Ferns. He worked for the women’s team in an advisory role during the 1990s under former coach Darryl Suasua, who led them to World Cup victories in 1998 and 2002.

This year’s World Cup, which was put back by a year because of the pandemic, will be the ninth edition of the women’s game and first to be staged in the southern hemisphere. The tournament takes place in New Zealand from October 8 to November 12.

Analysis: Smith’s appointment at odds with World Rugby strategy

Seven months to go until they play in a home World Cup, alarm bells are ringing for New Zealand. The fact that they have called on the services of one of their most esteemed coaches screams one word: help. 

The Black Ferns were humiliated during their northern tour last autumn and they have a mountain to climb if they want to be in with a shout of defending their World Cup crown. 

Their rustiness was brutally exposed by England and France last year and was reflective of how the national team had not played a Test match in more than two years because of the pandemic. Many have pointed to how New Zealand’s strict border controls have sent the side backwards, but the Black Ferns’ set-up has also been hit by bullying allegations. 

An independent review into the team’s culture was launched last December after veteran player Te Kura Ngata-Aerengamate revealed comments made by head coach Glenn Moore over the years had impacted her mental health.

While many will welcome Smith’s appointment given his highly decorated coaching CV, some will be less enamoured with the idea of a man being parachuted into a specialist role to try and spare New Zealand’s blushes. The decision certainly seems at odds with World Rugby’s aim of addressing a lack of female coaches at the elite level of the men’s and women’s game. 

Rugby’s governing body is currently funding 12 coaching internships for women for this year’s World Cup in New Zealand, and wants 40 per cent of all coaching staff at the 2025 Rugby World Cup to be women. Many have questioned why Anna Richards, the most capped Black Ferns player and regarded as a women’s rugby legend in New Zealand, has been overlooked for the role. 

As England continued their unblemished World Cup preparations with a 20th consecutive Test win with a landslide victory over Italy in the Six Nations at the weekend, New Zealand are playing catch up. Can Smith wave his magic wand and turn things around in just seven months? Only time will tell.