Ted’s Back. And He’s Not Mincing Words.
He’s blunt. The system has flaws. Say them out loud. Fix them. Wrapping feedback in cotton wool is not how the 2011 World Cup got won.
Ted’s Back. And He’s Not Mincing Words.
Sir Graham Henry has returned to the All Blacks setup as Dave Rennie’s independent selector. 79 years old. 88 wins from 103 tests. A 2011 World Cup winner. The closest thing NZ rugby has to a wise elder.
His message on day one: “We can’t continue doing what we’re doing.”
That line isn’t just about rugby. It’s about every business that’s coasted on past success and assumed the old formula still works.
Ted’s concern is the domestic game. Super Rugby has thinned out. South African teams gone. Less variety of opposition. Players heading overseas earlier. His blunt read: the competition isn’t tough enough to produce Test-ready talent anymore.
Swap “Super Rugby” for your market and “Test rugby” for the global benchmark you’re up against. The pattern is identical. Soft competition produces soft performance. The second the bar drops locally, the gap to world-class widens fast.
A few things about how Ted operates matter for any leader:
He watches. Rennie asked what he was seeing. Ted already had 60 players ready to discuss. That’s not instinct. That’s preparation, every week, for years, with no job attached to it.
He’s blunt. The system has flaws. Say them out loud. Fix them. Wrapping feedback in cotton wool is not how the 2011 World Cup got won.
He invests forward. Ted took the selector role because Sir Brian Lochore did the same for him. He’s repaying a debt to the next generation. The best leaders I know all do this. They don’t hoard the wisdom.
And he came back. At 79. After every accolade. Because the jersey still matters. There’s a lesson there for anyone telling themselves they’re “done.”
The rugby world keeps producing leaders who’ve operated under more pressure than most CEOs will ever face. Gilbert Enoka is one of them. Worth a conversation if you want your next leadership session led by someone who’s actually been there.
