All Blacks have nothing to worry about, says former New Zealand back Stephen Donald
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Former All Black Stephen Donald (second from right) believes New Zealand has to tap on their strengths as they try to catch up to world No. 1 South Africa.
ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG
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- Recent All Blacks losses have intensified scrutiny, but Stephen Donald emphasises hard work and self-reflection during tough times.
- Donald praises South Africa's depth under coach Rassie Erasmus and urges New Zealand to focus on their strengths: athleticism and skill.
- Donald believes the All Blacks have a steady pipeline of talent coming through, but emphasised that they need time to gel.
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SINGAPORE – Rugby is more than just a sport in New Zealand – it is deeply woven into the country’s culture and identity.
But with that status comes immense pressure, which is felt most acutely when results do not go the All Blacks’ way.
Recent defeats by South Africa and Argentina have intensified scrutiny on the team, but former All Black Stephen Donald believes moments like these are when character and hard work matter most.
“Players take those losses with them and wear them – when you lose as an All Black, you don’t feel better about yourself until the next game when you win,” said Donald in an interview on Oct 23 on the sidelines of an All Blacks rugby clinic held at Tanglin Trust School.
“Everyone who plays for the All Blacks and coaches the All Blacks knows how important it is to New Zealand, so it’s not a nice thing to be in that situation.
“But when you’re in that situation, all you can do is work hard, look in the mirror and accept that what you’re doing is not good enough and you just have to find a way to be better.”
In recent years, the three-time World Cup winners have played second fiddle to South Africa, who have thrived under head coach Rassie Erasmus.
Currently ranked No. 1 in the world, the Springboks have won the last two World Cups in 2019 and 2023, adding to their titles in 2007 and 1995, as well as the past two Rugby Championships.
Donald praised Erasmus for building depth in the squad, noting they “probably have 30 players right now that if they had to play in a World Cup final tomorrow, they would be very confident”.
As South Africa continue to flourish, Donald believes his former side, now ranked second, can learn from their rivals by doubling down on their own strengths.
The 41-year-old former fly-half said: “South Africa’s always going to have big forwards, always going to have wonderful kickers of the rugby ball, always going to be very good defensively. They play the game accordingly, they play it to their strengths.
“With New Zealand, we are great athletes with a very good skill level, naturally fast and play very fit, fast rugby. If we can take anything from the Springboks and how well they’re going at the moment, we need to play (to) what our strengths are as New Zealanders and not try and copy anyone else’s style.”
One topic dominating discussion back home has been the All Blacks’ struggles under the high ball.
But Donald, who kicked what turned out to be the winning penalty in the 2011 World Cup final, believes the issue has more to do with rule changes.
He said: “It’s turned into a 50-50 contest, so no one’s got an advantage. It’s literally whoever gets to the ball first. If you wind it back 10 years, you could build greater support for your catcher, you could have escorts who would run back and block the opposition as they were chasing, now you get penalised.
“Another thing that’s affecting it a lot is, they are making the rucks a lot longer. They call it the centipede, where players are piling up on each other and the half-back, the No. 9, doesn’t have to kick the ball with pressure on him, there’s no pressure on the box kick any more.
“He’s always going to put up a nice box kick – you’re always going to be waiting for the ball with pressure coming on you because you can’t escort, you’re always going to have the perfect kick, so it’s a lot harder.”
The All Blacks have endured some bruising results in 2025. In August, Argentina pulled off a historic 29-23 victory in a Rugby Championship Test – their first-ever home win over New Zealand.
The following month, they suffered the heaviest defeat in their history – a 43-10 loss to South Africa in Wellington, a result that saw the Springboks displace New Zealand at the top of the world rankings.
Despite the setbacks, Donald remains optimistic about the next generation of players coming through, highlighting several rising stars, including loose forward Peter Lakai, winger Leroy Carter, utility back Quinn Tupaea and scrum-half Cam Roigard.
He likened Lakai, 22, to New Zealand’s 2023 World Rugby Player of the Year Ardie Savea and also feels Roigard, 24, has the potential to become one of the world’s best.
Said Donald: “There’s a lot of good players coming through... we don’t have anything to worry about. It’s just how we get them all together and that takes time and good, clear coaching.”
