NEW ZEALAND

Henry won`t play policeman

Friday 04th July 2008

Be a good boy now: Jimmy Cowan and co. have Graham Henry's confidence

All Blacks coach Graham Henry has said there will be no change to the team's post-match protocol following recent incidents of drunken off-field behaviour.

Henry said he is not ready to start playing the role of a policeman and the would stick to the current policy of allowing players make their own decisions.

The All Blacks have been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons lately with scrum-half Jimmy Cowan being placed on an alcohol ban and delivered a final warning on Tuesday after being arrested for a second time in two months for disorderly behaviour, while number eight Jerome Kaino has been charged for an alcohol-related driving offence - all hot on the heels of the controversy surrounding certain England players' drunken antics in their hotel.

Cowan was also fined NZ$3,000 by the New Zealand Rugby Union and ordered to seek alcohol counselling but both he and Kaino are in the All Blacks team for this weekend's opening Tri-Nations fixture against South Africa in Wellington.

Henry was adamant that the All Blacks management would not change their attitude of treating his charges like professionals and hoped his players had learnt from the mistakes of their peers - both Kiwi and English.

"It's not about policing young people to do the right thing. It's about them making the right decisions and I think once we become a police-orientated rugby team it's the time to give it away, quite frankly," said Henry.

"I wouldn't want to be involved in that.

"I think it's about people making the right decisions. Sometimes they're not going to.

"Hopefully they learn from that and if they don't, they won't be here."