New Zealand have received a significant setback after it was announced that Leon MacDonald has departed the set-up ahead of the key Springboks Tests.

The former Blues head honcho joined the All Blacks coaching group after Scott Robertson became boss of the national team.

MacDonald was hand-picked by Robertson to be his attack coach when he succeeded Ian Foster following the Rugby World Cup.

It became quite clear that it was not working, however, and the 46-year-old has now quit before the games against the Springboks in South Africa.

Scott Hansen and Tamati Ellison will take on extra responsibility following the departure of MacDonald.

Hansen will help the All Blacks attack alongside backs coach Jason Holland while current skills guru Ellison will be on the defence for the rest of the season.

“Leon and I have been having some honest conversations with each other for a little while now. As coaches, we have differing views and both agreed it wasn’t working,” Robertson said in a statement.

“Leon and I both care deeply about the All Blacks and we believe we’ve made a decision that’s best for this team.

“There’s a huge amount of respect and appreciation for Leon in the group and the work he’s put in to get us to this point in our journey.

“As a team we have acknowledged that contribution and our focus now needs to be on South Africa, it’s going to be two tough Test matches over there.”

MacDonald and Robertson played together for both the Crusaders and All Blacks, but their coaching careers went in different directions.

While the latter headed up the Christchurch outfit, the former left to join their arch rivals the Blues on the North Island.

He spent four years in Auckland before the duo reconnected at the All Blacks, with MacDonald becoming an assistant coach and heading up the attack.

However, he lasted just five matches with Robertson and New Zealand Rugby making it clear that there was a clash of philosophies.

“You’ve got two great coaches who have been having some robust but constructive discussions on the approach to drive the All Blacks over a period of time now,” NZR’s head of professional rugby and performance Chris Lendrum said.