The All Blacks have abruptly cancelled a scheduled media conference with under-fire coach Ian Foster.
A day after the side’s 10-point third Test loss to Ireland in Wellington, the coach was scheduled to front media at the squad’s team hotel.
However, when media arrived, they were eventually told the stand up had been cancelled.
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On Saturday night, Foster refused to discuss his future as All Blacks coach after overseeing New Zealand’s first home series defeat in 27 years.
As yet, no official reason has been given for the late cancellation.
“I just want to talk about this test match,” said Foster.
“New Zealand has to realise this is a very good Irish team and give them some credit. It would be disrespectful to not make that the number one item. They’ve come and achieved something pretty special and they deserve a bit of time in the sun for that.
“For us, we’re a group working hard. We’ve got a lot of belief in many of the solutions we’ve got but we’ve got to get better at executing them. We’ve been given a real marker in the sand for where we’re at.”
The series decider saw the All Blacks facing an uphill battle from the outset, down 22-3 at halftime.
A late surge threatened to upset Ireland, although the final nail was put in the coffin when Ireland went over the line to ultimately end up winning 32-22 in Wellington.
The All Blacks have lost four of their last five matches, dropping Foster’s win percentage to an all-time low of 67 percent.
It’s been a comedown for the All Blacks, who under the guidance of Steve Hansen enjoyed an 87 percent success rate.
New Zealand has subsequently slumped to an all-time low fourth in the world rankings, led by France, Ireland and South Africa.
The All Blacks are less than a month away from their first Rugby Championship match against South Africa in early August.
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