Scott Robertson backs Joe Schmidt to have successful stint with Australia

Incoming All Blacks boss Scott Robertson has backed Joe Schmidt to have a successful stint with the Wallabies following his appointment as the new head coach.

Schmidt will replace Eddie Jones as their new coach after the Wallabies endured a tough 2023 having won just two out of the nine games and became the first ever Australian side to be eliminated from the opening round of the World Cup in France last year.

Nevertheless, Robertson is expecting the Wallabies to bounce back as the two teams lock horns in Bledisloe Cup later this year.

"He's got a great CV - he's a good pair of hands and is experienced so it's good timing for Australia and him," Robertson told Stan Sport.

"There's no outs. You'll know where you need to be on the field and know what the expectations are of you.

"He's a great rugby mind. He'll be clear."

Before his move to Australia, Schmidt was with the All Blacks as a national selector before joining Ian Foster's backroom staff as an assistant coach for the World Cup last year.

His success with the coaching came predominantly as Ireland when he took over as their head coach in 2013 and guided them to three Six Nations titles (2014, 2015 and Grand Slam 2018). He also guided them to first ever win against New Zealand in Chicago in 2016 and again defeated the All Blacks two years later in the November series.

The first of the two Bledisloe Cup Tests will be played in Sydney on 21st September while the New Zealand fixture is yet to be announced.