The former Ireland captain called out some members of the All Blacks for their ‘fake humility’.
New Zealand manager Scott Robertson has opened up on the spat between former Ireland and Leinster star Johnny Sexton and his All Blacks team.
Earlier this month, an excerpt from Sexton’s autobiography Obsessed was published in which the ex-Leinster star opened up on an exchange he had with New Zealand back Rieko Ioane after Ireland’s 2023 World Cup quarter final defeat in Paris.
The 39-year-old, who was playing his last ever international game before retirement that night, slammed New Zealand’s “famous ‘no d***heads’ policy” and revealed what Ioane said to him at the final whistle.
“As I stand there, hands on hips, staring in disbelief at Barnes, Rieko Ioane still comes up to me and tells me, ‘Get back ten metres,’” Sexton wrote.
“‘Penalty,’ he says. ‘Back ten.’ And then, after Barnes blows the final whistle, he says, ‘Don’t miss your flight tomorrow. Enjoy your retirement, you c***.’”
He added: “So much for the All Blacks’ famous ‘no d***heads’ policy. So much for their humility. I walk after Ioane and call him a fake-humble f****r. It doesn’t look great, me having a go at one of them just after we’ve lost. But I can’t be expected to ignore that.”
Following on from that, former New Zealand fullback Israel Dagg hit back at the Irishman on a radio show, claiming that Sexton and his teammates had made plenty of digs towards the southern hemisphere side in the past.
Rieko Ioane issued a very subtle but triggering response to Sexton’s remarks via his Instagram story.
The 27-year-old posted an image of his on-field spat with Sexton during last year’s World Cup quarter final, soundtracked by the song Zombie from Limerick band The Cranberries.
The clip appeared to imply that Ioane was inside Sexton’s head with the lyrics “in your head, in your head” featuring prominently.
Ioane also included a joker emoji above Ioane and a home emoji below Sexton, referencing that New Zealand had just knocked Ireland out of the tournament in Sexton’s final game.
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Now, ahead of a gruelling five-test tour that includes a meeting with Ireland next month, Scott Robertson said: “Look, it’s a bit of a story isn’t it?
“A bit of history in the channels of time,” he added. “I spoke to Rieko about it and asked him how I should discuss it and he said; ‘No, no – done coach’.
“When people write books and bring up moments, it’s going to create chat and talk and that’s part of the game. It doesn’t matter what sport, you’ve got real rivalries and there’s still a lot of respect that we need to show.”
The encounter between Ireland and New Zealand on 8 November at the Aviva was already set to be a feisty affair. The recent back and forth between Sexton and Ioane will only serve to heighten that tension.
