Robbie Deans has quickly discovered that in Sydney he is no longer Mr Anonymous.

As anyone who is anyone in New Zealand rugby knows, residing in the Shaky Isles can be like floundering in a fish bowl. It is all but impossible to escape the gaze of a rugby-obsessed population. That's why the Crusaders coach occasionally heads from Christchurch to Queenstown to go adventure boating because it is one of the few places where he is not bugged.

So for New Zealand's most successful provincial coach, a trip to Australia was something to be cherished, because he could walk down the street without being pestered by know-alls. Or so he thought. His recent appointment as Wallabies coach has changed all that.

Deans has spent the past few days in Manly with the Crusaders team preparing for Thursday night's trial match against the Waratahs at the Sydney Football Stadium. He has been regularly stopped for his thoughts on anything rugby or by those asking if he has bought a house this side of the Tasman.

Even getting through customs when he arrived in Australia last week for a series of Super 14 trial matches prompted instant recognition. When asked yesterday how the Australian immigration officers treated him on arrival, Deans said: "Very well. Most of them are Kiwis, actually."

The goodwill will continue, but Deans will still be involved in a bobbing and weaving exercise until he formally takes over the Wallabies in June.

There's not much point pressing him about which Australian players he is interested in because until mid-year his prime job is trying to motivate a New Zealand province into embarrassing those in Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra and Perth.

One eye will remain on the Australian teams and their players, but his mouth will be primarily focused on pushing the Crusaders' cause. As his future boss, Australian Rugby Union chief John O'Neill, explained last week: "At the moment, Deans has his day job coaching the Crusaders, and we deal with him at night ... so to speak."

Fulfilling two jobs may be difficult, but it is not bothering Deans.

"People tell me it will be tricky," Deans said yesterday. "But it is very easy, because I fulfil my obligations here [with the Crusaders], and then on June 1 start [with the Wallabies]. We can't gather as a group prior to that so there's not a lot I can do anyway."

But he still has encouraging news for the Australian spectator. Deans believes the introduction of several experimental laws will revive the Super 14 tournament, which begins next week.

"I think you will find this will be the best [tournament] yet," he said. "There will be a little more scope for attack with the benefit of another five metres space at scrum time, and the ability for the referee to manage the contact area a little bit more, as the use of the free kick should manifest itself with faster ball. With the potential of a quick line-out throw and quick tap, the game should be faster."

Deans agreed that the law variations would be "good for the game".

"The spectacle will improve and players and referees will find it easier to participate, which has got to be good."

The laws should not bewilder the onlooker either.

"Essentially they are not new laws," Deans said. "At line-out time, the teams are 10 metres, and five metres back at scrum time. So it's not that radical. It will just provide more scope for momentum.

"And the referees have ... lost no tools in terms of policing the game. So hopefully that will help the referees, who essentially have an impossible task around the contact area because it all happens so fast. It should help them manage that area, whereas often in the past they've had to guess."