All Blacks first-five Beauden Barrett has lept to the defence of under-fire coach Ian Foster, insisting the criticism directed his way after an underwhelming season is wide of the mark.
Barrett concedes there'll be red flags, if the All Blacks don't learn from their 2021 mistakes, but is adamant the side is in the best possible hands to lead them toward a fourth Rugby World Cup crown in 2023.
Nearing the end of his stay in COVID-19 quarantine, Barrett's had plenty of time to reflect on his 10th season in the All Blacks - one where clearly not everything went to plan.
"We may need to evolve a few things, become less predictable in what we do," he tells Newshub. "We did show a few cracks and weaknesses.
"They are [concerning], if we don't learn from them."
The All Blacks were figured out this season, particularly in the northern hemisphere, where they dropped back-to-back tests against Ireland and France that left them reeling from their worst season in 12 years.
Most of the criticism has been aimed at Foster.
"He's been under a fair bit of scrutiny, which does come with the job, but it is somewhat extreme," insists Barrett, who celebrated his 100th All Blacks test against Wales, before leaving the field concussed against Ireland and missing the French finale.
The veteran first-five thinks Foster is growing into the job and is confident he can turn a corner with the All Blacks before the 2023 World Cup.
"I think he's really grown from last year and is thriving in the job," says Barrett. "I fully back Fozzy to take us next year and build heading into the World Cup."
Barrett wants to play a key role in that process as well and went a long way to cementing the No.10 jersey over Richie Mo'unga this season.
He took the All Blacks' end-of-season dip personally and now wants to be the one to lead them out of it.
"I'm fully driven, and I want to be the one responsible for taking this team forward and learning from this season."
Barrett knows it's likely to be a long road to France in 2023, if they can't.
Check out the above video for the full interview
