Justin Marshall has suggested that having more All Blacks play abroad would not harm the national team\u2019s prospects as they seek to become the game\u2019s dominant force once more.<\/b><\/p>\n
New Zealand won back-to-back Rugby World Cups in 2011 and 2015, but those successes seem a distant memory following the record defeat to the Springboks on Saturday.<\/p>\n
While they continue to be among the top nations in the sport, they have created plenty of unwanted history since the 2019 global tournament.<\/p>\n
There were hopes that bringing in the very highly rated Scott Robertson<\/a> would change that but even he has overseen some disastrous days.<\/p>\n Losses to Argentina and South Africa<\/p>\n Last month, they became the first All Blacks<\/a> team to lose to Los Pumas on Argentinian soil and they arguably endured their worst-ever 80 minutes in Wellington, going down 43-10 to the Boks<\/a>.<\/p>\n There will no doubt be another inquest into this latest shambolic loss and it may force Robertson, as well as New Zealand Rugby, to reassess.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are, I guess to a degree, a little arrogant here in New Zealand where we feel that our type of rugby is the best type of rugby and that we can\u2019t learn,\u201d Marshall told SuperSport.<\/p>\n At the moment, NZR do not allow anyone who plies their trade abroad to play for the All Blacks.<\/p>\n Sabbaticals have enabled current New Zealand stars to earn lucrative short-term contracts but they have mainly been taken up in Japan, where the standard of rugby is not as high as in Europe or South Africa.<\/p>\n In contrast, SA Rugby do not have a restrictive overseas policy, enabling their players to go anywhere in the world.<\/p>\n During his playing days, Marshall featured for Leeds Tykes, Ospreys, Montpellier and Saracens, but he had to give up his Test career in order to do that.<\/p>\n Even though the former scrum-half was the wrong side of 30 when he travelled to the northern hemisphere, he felt that he improved.<\/p>\n \u201cI found that when I went over and played overseas, I did learn. I actually felt that the first two years I was there, and I left the All Blacks in 2005 after the British and Irish Lions series, I was a better player than the one that finished against the Lions,\u201d Marshall said.<\/p>\n \u201cI was a more balanced, rounded player because I had to start dealing with things like slow ball; regenerate, get momentum as we\u2019re just used to playing with such quick ball in New Zealand, so I had to be more creative as a nine and use my forwards a lot more cleverly.<\/p>\n \u201cI think players that are now going away having sabbaticals, like Jordie Barrett, is testament to that as he\u2019s come back a better player.\u201d<\/p>\n