All Blacks management have claimed responsibility for cancelling a scheduled media conference with head coach Ian Foster the morning after their historic series-deciding loss to Ireland at Wellington.
Amid public outcry over the result, cancellation of the stand-up at the team hotel only increased speculation over the futures of Foster and captain Sam Cane, who had been grilled by media after the game.
Media manager Jo Malcolm, who closed down the persistent questioning on Saturday night, has taken an unprecedented step of defending her attempt to protect Foster and Cane from further cross-examination over New Zealand's first series loss to Ireland and their fourth defeat in their last five outings.
"For the record, I decided not to demand that All Blacks head coach Ian Foster front late on Sunday morning, not him," she wrote in an emotional LinkedIn post.
"I felt he needed a day or so to work out what he wanted to say, and not just be a punching bag for the media, who - let's be clear - wanted blood.
"Let's not pretend there was a higher purpose here. Let's also be clear fans deserve to know what's going on - I'm very clear on that.
"The timing, well, he's a human being who I wanted to protect."
Malcolm says she now understands why tennis star Naomi Osaka refused to attend press conferences and withdrew from the 2021 French Open for mental health reasons.
"It's brutal when you lose and, yes, tough questions need to be asked," she said. "Ian Foster and Sam Cane have been bagged so much in the media, I felt they needed a little space to think.
"My bad? My hindsight? I'll take that hit - I am here to look after people, as well as do comms."
Malcolm is an experienced journalist and communications manager, who has worked extensively with NZ Rugby.
The decision to cancel the media conference has attracted criticism within her own public relations community, while a written statement from NZ Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson, describing the series performance as "not acceptable" has also drawn fire.
"They've probably dropped the ball there, the New Zealand Rugby Union - excuse the pun," Marshall told AM. "That's not helped the situation, I don't think.
"This is an organisation that should be together. If there's any, I guess, review needed to be done or any discussion about the series, that should be done internally."
Foster's future still hangs in limbo, but on Wednesday, he is expected to name his squad to face South Africa next month.
