Quesada warns All Blacks are 'amazingly coached' after Italy's 30-point Wellington defeat

Italy head coach Gonzalo Quesada sounded a warning about New Zealand’s direction under Dave Rennie after his side were beaten 47-17 at Hnry Stadium in Wellington, describing the All Blacks as ‘amazingly coached’ and admitting he is ‘worried’ about what the new regime is building.

Italy made a promising start, striking first and competing closely through a tight first half. Captain Michele Lamaro credited his side’s defensive resilience in the early exchanges but acknowledged that New Zealand’s decision to bring more width into their attack in the second half broke Italian resistance and opened the game up decisively.

Quesada was generous in defeat. “The All Blacks absolutely deserved the win; they played an amazing game,” he told reporters after the final whistle, while identifying Italy’s kicking strategy and fitness levels as areas requiring attention.

The fitness question carried particular weight given the context. When the two sides met in Turin in 2024 — a 29-11 All Blacks win — Lamaro recalled facing a New Zealand squad exhausted at the end of their season. Italy now find themselves in that same position, entering the final week of their campaign and managing fatigue, with the roles reversed.

Rennie, who replaced Scott Robertson in January, was only two games into his tenure in Wellington, yet Quesada was already impressed by what he saw from the coaching group around him. “I know some of the people on that staff and I’m worried,” he said. “Good people inspire players, and when you have so much talent like the All Blacks have today, and you can feel a nice energy — that’s significant.”

Quesada was careful to note that the style of play had not changed dramatically from Robertson’s era, suggesting the margin in Wellington owed more to Italy’s fatigue and New Zealand’s clinical finishing than to any wholesale tactical shift. “They took far more of the opportunities that they had,” he said, “and we had a better level of energy to compete” in Turin.

The Italian coach also took care to defend Robertson’s legacy. “Scott Robertson is an amazing coach. He’s a great man and a great coach,” Quesada added, acknowledging the difficulty of drawing firm conclusions from only Rennie’s second match in charge.

For Italy, the defeat ends a tour of New Zealand that nonetheless reinforced Lamaro’s belief that his side have turned a corner in their ability to compete with the world’s top teams — even if a first win over the All Blacks remains elusive.