Former Blackcaps cricket coach Mike Hesson has revealed how some critics left faeces on his doorstep, after his decision to axe veteran Ross Taylor from the limited-overs captaincy in 2012.
Speaking on an upcoming edition of Sky Sport's The Pod, Hesson admits the leadership controversy was the toughest period of his tenure with the NZ men's cricket team, which he guided to their first-ever World Cup final three years later.
The move to replace Taylor with swashbuckling Brendon McCullum as one-day and T20 skipper prompted Taylor to also step down from the test role, soon after leading New Zealand to their first victory in Sri Lanka in 14 years.
"I had hate mail put in the door," Hesson tells former test wicketkeeper, now Sky commentator Ian Smith. "I had faeces put on my front door at my house.
"It was a pretty horrible time and all I was trying to do was what I thought was right for the cricket team at the time."
Taylor and McCullum represented a contrast in leadership styles, with the latter more inclined to force the issue, rather than let situations develop over the course of a match.
That change in approach would inspire New Zealand to a purple patch in all forms of the game, with Taylor allowed to concentrate on his record-breaking batting career.
"We saw [McCullum] as a cool, calm head. He certainly wouldn't let the game drift and would be quite proactive in terms of his approach.
"He was also able to get that 'follow-me' mentality. I thought he was the only person at the time that could have done that with the group of players we had."
But Hesson claims there were "snakey" elements within and around the national side that sought to exploit the change by playing one side against the other.
"There were a number of people who didn't know many facts, who didn't know Ross or myself, who were very opinionated about things," he reflects. "It was what I felt we needed to do to move the team forward.
"It was a really untidy time, but I don't regret the decision. I certainly regret the fallout from it and the way people felt throughout it.
"I still think it was the right decision. Could it have been done better? Of course it could have."
Hesson eventually stood down from the coaching role in 2018, with current mentor Gary Stead taking the reins.
