Lynn, the former Highlanders utility back turned attack coach, is now with Argentina as an assistant in Felipe Contepomi’s coaching team.
He acknowledges there will be a mild flicker of strangeness when he watches the haka ahead of tonight’s test in Wellington but otherwise he will be there to do a job.
"It’s a little bit weird, yeah. I’m a Kiwi, and it’s the All Blacks," Lynn told the Otago Daily Times.
"But it’s sort of how international rugby has gone a bit. A lot of Kiwis have coached against the All Blacks during their career.
"I’m loving this group. The Argies have always been a pretty cool team and this is a great opportunity for me."
Lynn cut his coaching teeth with the Lyon club in France before coming home to work for the Highlanders.
Staying just one season was not really the plan but the Pumas opportunity was too good to turn down.
He confirmed he had hoped to balance both jobs but was told that would not be possible.
"I was loving it at the Highlanders. But it was a no-go pretty early. NZR said it was too hard to do.
"It’s a good opportunity but it was hard to leave after a year with the Highlanders, because I was really enjoying it.
"This is a chance for me to coach internationally but also keep learning, and being able to stay in New Zealand is a big bonus."
Lynn does not have to be with Argentina full time, so he and his family can keep their base in Dunedin.
He spent about a month in Buenos Aires for the July test window, and will return for a spell during the Rugby Championship.
Then he will be home for a month, on tour for a month, and mostly at home for a long stretch between December and June.
That chance to spend lots of time at home was a big plus as the family had not long moved back from France and the children were settling into schools, Lynn said.
He was like the new boy in class when he first joined the Pumas.
"There was a lot to take in at the start, because it all happened pretty quickly.
"They’re a really welcoming group. They’re good, the Argies. They’ve got that good mix of Latin but they’re a lot like Kiwis in a lot of ways as well."
It was helpful to have the great Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe on the staff — Lynn and the former Pumas captain did their coaching certificates together in France — while most of the squad spoke perfect English, he said.
The interesting thing about Argentina was that they were a southern hemisphere team but all the players came from clubs in Europe, Lynn said.
"You certainly get the sense of the passion they get for coming back and playing for their country."
Pablo Matera and Marcos Kremer were the obvious players to watch in a beefy forward pack.
Lynn has also been impressed by first five Santiago Carreras.
"He is a talented guy. Very capable all-round game and quite dangerous with ball in hand."
As for the All Blacks, Lynn knows this will be an immense challenge for the Pumas.
"Razor and all those coaches are really good operators, and I thought they did well against an English team that had been together for a bit longer and put the ABs under pressure.
"I think we’ll see a team getting better every week. We’re expecting a big challenge, and a massive step up."
