Schalk: Rennie faces early Bok stress test

Springbok great Schalk Burger has warned new All Blacks coach Dave Rennie to expect a brutal early examination against Springboks later this year.

But Burger believes Rennie has the mentality to shake up the All Blacks quickly once he puts all the necessary structures in place.

Rennie replaces Scott Robertson who had been fired after an in-depth 2025 season review, and doesn’t have much time to settle in. He’ll soon have to turn his focus to the demanding Greatest Rivalry Tour, a four-Test series against the world champions across South Africa and the United States.

“Again, it’s a short turnaround, and it starts this year with big Test matches, four against the Boks. That will probably give you a greater indication of what your player corps looks like. Do you try to get players back from Japan? And then who is your captain?” Burger said on The Verdict podcast.

MORE: Rennie relishes Greatest Rivalry showdown

The tour – which includes matches in Johannesburg and Cape Town as well as a fourth Test in the USA –  forms the centrepiece of the 2026 international season, with the All Blacks also set to face the Stormers, Sharks, Bulls and Lions during their six-week stay in South Africa.

However, before taking on the Boks, Rennie’s All Blacks will need to negotiate Tests against northern hemisphere heavyweights France, Ireland and Italy as part of the Nations Championship in July.

Burger believes Rennie’s track record suggests he could quickly stamp his authority on the side.

“Dave Rennie was about 15 seconds away from winning the Bledisloe before he got fired [as Wallabies coach]. If it wasn’t for that, he would have won the Bledisloe for the first time in 20-odd years,” Burger said.

“He was a good coach at the Chiefs and Glasgow. I played against him when Glasgow were competitive. He’s old school. He is a hard taskmaster. I think it’s a good fit for the All Blacks. He’s not got a lot of time, but I think he’s got that mentality where he can change the team around quickly.”

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Burger expects Rennie’s arrival to trigger changes within the squad as the new coach imposes his own vision.

“Every coach has their own ideas, and the core of the team will change a little bit. It’s a lot of pressure, it’s a big gig to take over, and what we’ve seen from the last two generations or two stints of coaches, the public and the players, there’s not a lot of tolerance,” Burger said.

“If you look at Robertson’s career, it’s not a bad one. He got fired while second in the world – you don’t have a lot of bandwidth to play with. Good luck to Dave.”

READ: Big Vic backs Rennie to reset All Blacks culture

Photo: Anton Geyser/AG Media

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