Kieran Crowley sends advice to Gonzalo Quesada

Kieran Crowley open-hearted after farewell to Italrugby

After officially bidding farewell to the Italrugby bench at the end of the Rugby World Cup, Kieran Crowley è spoke to the microphones of "Sky Sport" to take stock of his three years in the Azzurri. In addition, the New Zealander wanted to send advice to new coach Gonzalo Quesada pointing out the main areas of improvement in order to make the leap forward.

"The team has developed a style of play, which I don’t know if it will maintain. We have regained the public and offered some good performances. During my management if I think about the ranking, although for me it is not è an absolute indicator, we went from 14th to 11th place. We have worked a lot on the field, but also off the field on all aspects of preparing for matches, and I must say that è it has been done in an exemplary way. The players have learned to manage themselves and take responsibility," began the former Italrubgy coach.

"The wins with Samoa and Australia came after very good performances and the 2022 win against Wales è was very positive. The 2023 Six Nations for me è was very positive from the point of view of the game, we could have brought home some wins. Initially there was low self-esteem and we had to regain respect and credibility, and I think we succeeded. I am aware that the knockouts against New Zealand and France have diminished the last two, but they cannot spoil all the progress that è has been made" added the former New Zealand coach.

"I would have liked to work with the boys and when I think about it I feel empty, also becauseé so many of them will get to have 50-60 caps at the international level and this will allow the whole system to improve ahead of 2027 and 2031. To make the qualitative leap, I think it will be crucial to work on power, explosivity, and tonnage. During the Rugby World Cup, I saw a team that struggled to limit rival drives, and if we look at formations like Ireland and South Africa, they often make substitutions without lowering the bar. We played a rugby adapted to our characteristics, but at the World Cup the level rises, so it will be crucial to accumulate experience to handle those "Do or die" competitions concluded Kieran Crowley.