Ballet dancers. Sumo wrestlers. Cage fighters. Deep Purple blasting in the sheds. This is the world of Mike Cron – the Scrum Doctor who coached 217 Tests with the All Blacks, lifted 3 Rugby World Cups, and is now helping fuel the Wallabies’ revival.
For over 40 years, Crono’s been obsessed with one thing: making rugby smarter, safer, and more effective. But instead of just looking inside the game, he’s gone everywhere for answers — ballet studios for balance, netball courts for movement, cage fighting gyms for contact, even the New York Yankees for culture.
You’ll hear the raw stories and coaching philosophies that have kept him at the very top of world sport. No clichés. No tired coaching jargon. Just lessons that hit way beyond the rugby field — about leadership, curiosity, resilience, and creating safe environments for players to thrive.
Featuring insights from James Slipper, Harry Wilson, and Nic White, this is a rare deep dive with one of rugby’s true masterminds.
02:00 - The feedback Mike asked of Andrew
04:00 - Mike's never-ending birthday celebrations
05:30 - Learning from other sports (sumo, cage fighting, netball, baseball)
08:35 - How biomechanics influence rugby union
12:35 – How Mike integrates netball into rugby
17:35 – Sticking to morals as a coach
20:35 – How to do shorter performance reviews
22:55 – Coaching men vs women
24:35 – Book recommendation
27:35 – Reviewing and giving feedback to athletes
35:35 – How Deep Purple propelled the All Blacks to victory
38:35 – Applying Deep Purple to team training
43:35 – Communication, planning, and preparation
45:20 – “Too old to coach?”
47:35 – Entering Australian rugby with the Wallabies
51:35 – Nudgee College chapter
55:35 – Mike's training philosophies
56:35 – Mike's lessons and influences
1:01:35 – Creating a safe learning environment
1:09:05 – Learnings from coaching & advice for new coaches
Learn more about Mike here: https://www.mikecroncoaching.co.nz/
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