All Blacks media manager Jo Malcolm has set the record straight on why coach Ian Foster didn’t attend a press conference on Sunday following the side’s series loss to Ireland in Wellington on Saturday night.
In a post on professional networking site LinkedIn, Malcolm said she made the choice not to put Foster up for media as he is a “human” first.
“I decided not to demand that All Blacks head coach Ian Foster front late on Sunday morning. Not him,” she said.
“I felt he needed a day or so to work out what he wanted to say and not just be a punching bag for the media, who, let’s be clear, wanted blood.”
She said while fans deserve to know what’s going on, Foster is “a human being who I wanted to protect.”
“Ian Foster and Sam Cane have been bagged so much in the media, I felt they needed a little space to think. My bad? Hindsight? I’ll take that hit. I am here to look after people as well as do comms.“
Foster’s coaching has come under heavy scrutiny as he now has the lowest win percentage of any professional era All Blacks coach.
He was summoned for a discussion with NZR chief executive Mark Robinson, who called the series loss “not acceptable”, on how improvements could be made ahead of the Rugby Championship. Robinson is expected to report to an NZR board meeting on Wednesday.
A review, which is standard procedure following a series, is to be conducted.
Malcolm also referenced tennis star Naomi Osaka, saying she understood why Osaka chose not to attend press conferences. Osaka did not front the media at the 2021 French Open to protect her mental health and well being.
All Blacks coach Ian Foster will attend a meeting with NZ Rugby this week.
“It’s brutal when you lose,” she said.
“… and yes tough questions need to be asked.”
Malcolm, who spent more than a decade as a journalist, and teaches journalism said “we are all human beings” and that journalists should be “a human first”. She said in the wake of the series loss she is “… losing faith in people’s ability to be journalists, PR people AND be humans”.
Malcolm’s human-first approach is what reviewers in various sports have been calling for. The review into cycling – which was established following the suspected suicide of Olympic cyclist Olivia Podmore – found an emphasis on result and medals over athletes as human beings is detrimental to their mental health and well-being.
She has asked for people to “think before you join the media in a massive pile on”.
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