Embattled All Blacks head coach Ian Foster has received the unequivocal backing of the New Zealand Rugby Union as the man to lead the side to the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

Joining Foster will be former Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt, who has been brought in as attack coach with immediate effect.

Schmidt, who famously led Ireland to its first victory over New Zealand at Chicago's Soldier Field in November 2016, brings an analytical edge to the All Blacks' setup.

Renowned as a tough disciplinarian, Schmidt's video review sessions at Leinster and Ireland live in Irish Rugby folklore as being cutting, but incredibly effective. 

Under Schmidt's tutelage, Ireland reached No. 1 in the world rankings, but ultimately succumbed to two disappointing World Cup quarterfinal exits, one of which was at the hands of the All Blacks.

"Just talking about the addition of Joe Schmidt, Joe Schmidt has been on my radar probably for a couple of years," Foster said. "We agreed at the start of this year that his role was to join us after the Irish series as an independent selector to replace Grant Fox. In addition, he was going to do some analysis of the opposition and work alongside me in the strategy area. He started that up after the Irish series."

Confirming Schmidt's responsibilities in the role, Foster said, "Delighted with how that is going. We have got a great relationship with Joe and how that works. Subsequently in conversations, we have now decided to move him from the computer room and actually put him on the park a little bit more. On the park, he is going to work alongside me, and to a slightly lesser extent, Stormy [Scott McLeod] in terms of having a bit of an impact on the park with the attack part."

Opening the season with a historic series loss to Ireland and then following it with a thumping at the hands of the Springboks put Foster under immense pressure. 

The Irish series, in particular, had far-reaching implications, as assistant coaches John Plumtree and Brad Mooar were brutally axed from the setup.

Replacing Plumtree was Crusaders forwards coach, Jason Ryan, whilst Foster took over the backs from Mooar prior to Schmidt's appointment.

Beating the Boks convincingly in Round 2 of the Rugby Championship appears to have swung the opinion of the NZRU officials. 

"There was strong support from both Mark (Robinson, NZR CEO) and the board for us going forward," Foster said. "At the start of this campaign, we didn't get what we wanted against Ireland, and that created a lot of performance stress. That is part of my job, and I expect to be grilled in that space. So, through the last month, I have had a number of conversations about how we can grow our organization and make sure we get the performance we want on the park.

"We have made some changes, and we are continuing to keep evaluating our group to make sure we have what we need going through to the World Cup. I am really delighted with where we have got to from today on."

Seemingly locked in with their coaching staff through the end of the World Cup, the All Blacks will return their focus to winning the Rugby Championship.

Having split the series with the Springboks, the All Blacks have a strong chance of retaining their title with two home tests against Argentina's Los Pumas. 

These fixtures are followed by a home and away series with a depleted Wallabies squad which is fresh off a hammering at the hands of Los Pumas.

Written by Philip Bendon