Steve Hansen, Joe Schmidt and Don Tricker in the frame as New Zealand Rugby creates new role to restore the All Blacks
Tuesday, 24 February 2026
Steve Hansen, Joe Schmidt and Don Tricker are the early frontrunners for the new role of high-performance director at New Zealand Rugby as the overhaul of the organisation continues.
NZ Rugby announced on Tuesday that Chris Lendrum, NZ Rugby’s general manager, professional rugby and performance, will step down at the end of May after more than 20 years in the building.
A new high-performance director role has been created - with an emphasis on working with the All Blacks - and recruitment will start “immediately”.
The new role will be part of a major structural revamp in place by the end of May that will see the All Blacks coach work closely with the high-performance director, rather than report directly to the NZ Rugby chief executive officer.
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Hansen is currently working in a director of rugby at Toyota Verblitz, although he has found success hard to come by in Japan.
But he has a strong understanding of the pressures and challenges faced by an All Blacks coach - Dave Rennie or Jamie Joseph are leading the race to take the job - and the New Zealand rugby landscape more broadly.
Schmidt is coaching the Wallabies until the end of July but that will not disqualify him: The Post understands the right candidate for the new high-performance role will not need to be in place by the end of May.
Tricker was the high performance manager for NZ Rugby from 2010 to 2018 and is currently being used as a consultant.
Tricker played a part in the review that saw NZ Rugby part ways with Scott Robertson and he is on the five-man panel that will choose the next All Blacks coach.
The identity of the successful candidate for the new role will reflect what NZ Rugby sees as important.
Hansen and Schmidt would represent more hands-on candidates who could challenge or support the All Blacks coach as necessary, while Tricker has a strong background in coach and player development and pathways.
However, it is clear that NZ Rugby is now laser-focused on restoring the All Blacks to the top of the world after years of slippage.
A chief rugby officer role has also been created and will be filled by interim chief executive Steve Lancaster when NZ Rugby appoints a new chief executive.
NZ Rugby said his role will oversee professional rugby operations, tournaments and competitions, community rugby, and manage key stakeholder relationships and agreements.
Lendrum will continue in a consulting capacity to the end of 2026.
“I have known Chris for almost his entire professional career, having first hired him into the professional rugby team at NZ Rugby 20 years ago,” Lancaster said in a statement. “Over that period, he has grown into an internationally respected sporting leader and has made an enormous contribution to rugby in New Zealand.”
Lendrum said in a statement: “It’s been a huge privilege to be involved in New Zealand Rugby and our national teams for this long, and work alongside some incredible people across the game.
“Together, we’ve seen plenty of success, although sometimes we haven’t achieved goals that we and the country all wanted so dearly.
“There are too many highlights but I’m particularly proud of leading the organisation through the Black Ferns culture and environment review in 2021 which set the foundation for the incredible Rugby World Cup win a year later.
“As international rugby becomes increasingly competitive and complex, NZR now requires a singular focus on driving the success of our Teams in Black. I’m excited for their future.”