Sitting in a coffee shop with a view of a resplendent Coogee beach in the distance, Joe Schmidt’s thoughts drift from the coastal suburb of Sydney to his home in Taupo, the stunning lakeside town in ’s north island. Schmidt had moved there with his family after stepping down as head coach following the 2019 World Cup. Even if that tournament had not gone to plan, culminating in a heavy defeat by New Zealand in the quarter-finals, he could look back on a remarkable list of achievements: three Six Nations titles including one Grand Slam on the back of three trophy-laden seasons with Leinster.
At the time he had . His son Luke had suffered from severe epilepsy since the age of four and Schmidt wanted to spend more time helping him transition into tertiary education. “If you think Coogee is nice, you should see Taupo,” he says.
“It is such a beautiful place. I was very much looking forward to spending time there fishing and golfing, and having time with the family was my number one target.” Yet here now the 58-year-old New Zealander sits in a café across the Tasman with a view to die for, talking all things rugby a week before he takes charge of his first Test as the .
His focus returns. One of the first questions is why? From afar, it looks like a thankless task, one that could put his legacy at risk. It has been a circuitous route, he says, an unexpected one.
After returning to New Zealand, he worked remotely as director of rugby and high performance with World Ru.