He treats them like sons and they gave him a title; Inside Rob Penney’s journey that leads the Crusaders to Super Rugby glory
Winning wasn’t just about lifting another cup; It was a deep personal victory for Penney, who was under a heavy examination in a difficult 2024 season. Orum I treat them like my sons, ”he said, holding back emotions while praising the sand and loyalty.
Penney attributed the transformation of the team to a collective commitment and flexibility. “People behind the scenes, management, coaches, players, wider staff… This is what’s going on us,” he said.
After the match, players gathered around their coaches, many of them showed the reason why Penney’s leadership was left.
The Crusaders devoted the captain David Havili to Penney to Penney, “We believed in him and believed in us. So this title made him feel very special.”
Despite the public pressure in 2024, Penney was in the course to change it after a bad start to the season. Now, he helped the Crusaders maintain their excellent playoff records at home, and reminded the fans why the franchise is the southern hemisphere rugby gold standard.
Who is Rob Penney? The man behind the return of the Crusaders
Born in Christchurch in 1964, Rob played loose for Canterbury before moving to coaching.
After led Canterbury to four consecutive NPC titles between 2008 and 2011, he was recognized and prepared the ground for a coaching career that would cover the world.
In 2012, Penney took responsibility for the New Zealand team under the age of 20 and further strengthened its role as the developer of young talents. Later, from 2012 to 2014, he coached Munster in Ireland, where he received praise despite the complicated, running rugby -style mixed results.
Penney’s career later took him to Japan and then to Australia, where he led the NSW Waratahs. There, the term of office ended in a challenging reconstruction phase in 2021, but remained flexible and remained open to new challenges.
Following Scott Robertson’s legendary title run, he returned home in 2023 to get the rudder of the Crusaders. Despite the early struggles and public suspicion, Penney decided on the principles of patience, trust and team belief.
In 2025, under the leadership of the Crusaders, he roared to win another super Rugby Pacific crown, a victory of the character about tactics.
He has three sons who live with him in Ireland, who lived with him and attended school in Cork. During his ten years in Ireland, Japan and Australia, Penney usually faced long separations from his family; Covid spent nine months apart during their locks. However, it defines experience as enriching.
