McKenzie decision looking rash as ‘Tahs look to semis
By Darren Walton, 21 Apr 2008 Darren Walton is a Roar Pro
The NSW board must be regretting its decision to set coach Ewen McKenzie free at the end of the season after the Waratahs continued their surge up the Super 14 ladder on Saturday night.
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The Waratahs recovered from a sloppy, scoreless first half to outclass the Lions 26-3 and stretch their winning streak to four matches – and three since the board announced it didn’t need McKenzie in 2009.
Now it may well be ruing such a rash decision.
The Waratahs are travelling beautifully in third position, still unbeaten in Sydney this campaign and well in contention for a home semi-final.
And McKenzie, the only coach to have guided an Australian Super 14 team to the playoffs since 2004, remains the most qualified for the NSW job.
Little wonder the former Wallabies assistant coach and World Cup-winning prop had a grin from ear to ear when asked on Saturday night if his bosses had asked him to reapply yet.
McKenzie has no axe to grind with the Waratahs hierarchy – publicly at least – but he was only half joking when he remarked that “they might be running out of candidates”.
You don’t need to be Einstein to realise McKenzie’s successor will be on a hiding to nothing next season.
Yet when told he would not be required beyond 2008, McKenzie the pragmatist insisted there would be no “there you go NSW, shove that up ya” style gloating if he steered the Waratahs to the title in his farewell season.
No doubt, though, the champagne will taste even sweeter when he – as seems inevitable – signs a lucrative contract to coach French outfit Stade Francais.
With Brumbies mentor Laurie Fisher, a good friend and former colleague of McKenzie’s, also given his notice last week, Lions coach Eugene Euloff called on rugby chiefs to keep the faith.
“I think union administrators should be patient with coaches before you hire and fire them because sometimes it takes a while to build a phenomenal side,” Euloff said after watching the Waratahs run in four unanswered tries to blow away his Lions.
The bonus-point triumph kept NSW on track for an all-important top-two finish, but McKenzie refused to get carried away ahead of the Waratahs’ pivotal encounter with the second-placed Sharks at the Sydney Football Stadium on Saturday night.
The Sharks clash is the Waratahs’ last home fixture before a treacherous stretch of away games against the defending champion Bulls and fourth-placed Stormers in South Africa and annual grudge match against Queensland in Brisbane.
“We need to play better,” McKenzie said.
“We’ve got the Sharks next week, so that’s a big challenge.
“Then we’ve got the Bulls, who are improving. The Stormers are improving. They’re both over there, which is a tough assignment, and then we’ve got the Reds, who are on a mission to make everyone’s life miserable.
“That hasn’t been a great fixture for us in the past, so there’s lots to be focused on in the next period of time.”
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USRugbyFan said | April 21st 2008 @ 8:03am | Report comment
Why would they be ruing their decision? The Waratahs were playing crappy rugby up until the NSWRU decided not to renew McKenzie’s contract (which is different by the way, than firing him). Now the Waratahs are playing like they should have been playing all along, all because McKenzie knows he is on the way out and doesn’t care about the criticism he might take. Good for the NSWRU. Now they can send him out the door on a high note and get someone into the coaching seat who might actually get the best of out the team from the very start. Stop crying for McKenzie, he brought his fate on himself by not getting his team to play to the best of their abilities, which is a coach’s job.
sheek said | April 21st 2008 @ 10:36am | Report comment
I agree with USRugbyFan.
This is an example of reviewing history with the benefit of hindsight. There is a cause & effect scenario being ignored. The Waratahs are now playing well PRECISELY because they made the decision to dump McKenzie. This decision acted as a circuit breaker for all involved.
If McKenzie were still contracted for next year & beyond, the Waratahs would probably still be fumbling along, the coach would still be scratching his head, & everyone else would still be grumbling.
The South Sydney Rabbitohs RL team are a case in point, to illustrate why sacking McKenzie was the right thing to do. Winless after 6 rounds, everyone is telling the Rabbitohs, they should this, they shouldn’t do that, they gotta do some other thing.
The harder the players try, the more they falter. Often there is a very fine line between trying just hard enough to succeed, & overcooking your effort. We’ve all been there. The Rabbitohs are trying so hard to win, they have forgotten the process.
Everyone should step back & take a big breath. The Rabbitohs should go back to concentrating on the basics, & the win will follow. It’s like the story of the guy trying to jump from one river bank across to the other side. He takes a huge run-up, gives it his almightiest leap, falls short & drowns in the turbulent waters.
Had he taken time to peruse the situation, he would have discovered that just upstream there were stepping stones, he could have negotiated individually, that would have got him safely across to the other side.
Sacking McKenzie was the ‘pause’ everyone needed to take better stock of the situation. That is why the Waratahs are now playing well, & the Rabbitohs are still floundering.
Here endeth the homily.
Roger said | April 21st 2008 @ 10:54am | Report comment
I am not sure that sacking McKenzie was a circuit breaker, but getting a new coach after 5 years isnt such a bad idea anyway.
The games up to McKenzie’s sacking were probably an inaccurate indication of his coaching ability (or more importantly whether players are responding to his coaching). Most of the games were in the rain, Beale’s play was erratic (esp his kicking…I thought the rule with kicking in play was to kick it to a contest or kick it out…kicking mid field down their throat was aweful by Beale).
Everyone but Cheifs has been flogged by Crusaders, so I didnt think Tahs were going that badly. The forwards were getting backline plenty of ball, but the young backline is only now showing the faith in them. Burgess was due for a game against Crusaders but couldnt play, and Horne ( not having played senior footy yet) wasnt considerd until Jacobs got hurt…btw it was no secret that everyone thought Horne was always going to be a star but not his soon.
Before anyone says, “stop making excuses for link”
Fox said | April 21st 2008 @ 2:05pm | Report comment
It’s a done deal. We look forward. We move on. What is important at this stage is not whether the decision to sack McKenzie was the right one, but ensuring that the Board of the NSWRU actually get behind the new coach and extend to him their unanimous support.
The NSWRU must bring to an end a culture punctuated regularly by a Night of the Long Knives type saga. It gives nobody confidence, not the coaches, not the players and certainly not the fans. There are truly some white ants on the Board and people making decisions, or attempting to thwart decisions, who don’t know much about rugby (or administration it seems at times).
Link is a top man and truly a legend of the game. I think he should be admired and applauded for his efforts in trying to unite a truly disparate club that was all over the shop in terms of coaching, consistency, culture and coffers when he took the helm. He made a difference and perhaps in hindsight might have just been rounding a corner with this squad. However, while it is time for a fresh start, McKenzie is right when he says he leaves the club in better shape than when he inhereted it. I would add significantly better.
Link made a difference and it is now up to the new coach to take this excellent squad to the next level. I just hope the Board are able to mirror the sort of honour, dedication, grace, humour, resolve and determination that Link exhibited in hs time in charge of the Waratahs. We are fans of the game first and the club second. A distant last are the executives and their fragile ego-driven wars and pathetic power struggles. To the Board of the NSWRU I say get over yourselves and get on with the job of making us proud to be Waratah fans. We are watching.