Rod Macqueen is the king of rugby coaches
Columnist
By Spiro Zavos, 13 Jan 2010 Spiro Zavos is a Roar Expert
A few days ago Rod Macqueen told me he was considering offers from the Melbourne Rebels to be either the new Super Rugby franchise’s director of rugby or the team’s coach. Now he has taken on both jobs.
And in a typical Macqueen example of far-sightedness has taken on the most promising young coach in Australia, Sydney University’s Damien Hill, as his assistant coach with a view to promoting him in due course.
Wayne Smith has pointed out in The Australian that Macqueen has not coached (aside from a couple of festival sides) since 2001.
He has been involved in rugby, though. He was a consultant to the ARU for some years and was involved in setting up the ARC. He was also part of the IRB group that devised the ELVs system.
It’s history now that a spleen of British journalists and the RFU (England’s rugby union) reduced the number of ELVs allowed into the laws of the game.
These same journalists and the RFU are now complaining bitterly about the boring play of England and the lack of tries in the English tournaments. But that is another story …
The point is that Macqueen has been involved with rugby and should come back to coaching without too many problems.
Macqueen is the most successful Australian coach in the history of the game here.
He coached NSW in 1991 to a rare unbeaten season, which included a tour of Argentina. This NSW team formed the rump of the World Cup-winning Wallabies of 1991. For his efforts Macqueen was rewarded by the NSWRU by being dumped as coach.
One of the tragedies of Australian rugby is that the NSWRU has a history of ignoring and neglecting Macqueen’s coaching and administrative talents. Perhaps the fact that he was a Warringah stalwart and not a Randwick person has had something to do with this.
Anyway, it is history now that in 1996 Macqueen created the ACT Brumbies franchise and made it the most successful Super Rugby franchise.
He had a few ACT stars like George Gregan, Stephen Larkham and Joe Roff and a lot of NSW discards, including David Knox who under Macqueen’s coaching became Australia’s leading five-eighths for a few years.
Then Macqueen moved on to the Wallabies and took them from the number five ranking to the World Champions in 1999.
Under Macqueen the Wallabies won every trophy available to them. He rounded out his career with the team with a series victory of the British and Irish Lions in 2001.
I had a long conversation with Macqueen when he was appointed to the Brumbies job. He went through all the moves, patterns and philosophy of play he wanted the Brumbies to have. The Brumbies continuity style later became copied or stolen by coaches around the world.
Macqueen has been a successful businessman, with a successful in-store designing firm. He developed, for instance, one of the first colour charts. He used this flair for inventive but practical thinking with his coaching.
He once asked me, for instance, why do teams kick-off directly to designated catchers in the opposition. Macqueen introduced the tactic of lining his forwards along the halfway mark and the kicker kicking to where the opposition did not want the ball to go.
Numerous of his innovations are now part of the standard practice.
He was the first to divide lineouts into two pods to nullify a great jumper like John Eales.
Before the 1999 RWC he showed me and Evan Whitton his laptop preparations given to each player. Gregan, for instance, could see on his laptop how he went in all the man-on-man situations against, say, Justin Marshall, the All Blacks halfback. He told me after 1999 that he was intent on trying to find a way to nullify his continuity game.
It will be interesting to see if the Melbourne Rebels came up with innovations that become standard practice in the next few years.
The Melbourne Rebels organisation are claiming that when they hired Brian Waldren, from the Melbourne Storm, they claimed one of the three best sports administrators in Australia. John O’Neill and Andrew Demetriou would be the other two, I would guess.
With Macqueen the organisation has hired one of the two great coaches currently working in Australian rugby.
Macqueen and Robbie Deans gives Australian a two-pack punching power that should power on the Melbourne Rebels and then the Wallabies to great things in the next two years.
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Sam Taulelei said | January 13th 2010 @ 12:51pm | Report comment
After some early stumbles Melbourne have made some astute selection choices within their top administration. Getting the top level management team right is critical for any fledgling team and it reassures players that they’re joining a well organised and professional organisation when scouts are recruiting. Rod MacQueen’s name is enough to spark interest for any aspiring rugby player. A wise and clever signing.
rugbyfuture said | January 13th 2010 @ 12:52pm | Report comment
The rebels are certainly going to be a force. Spiro, i wouldn’t mind to hear your full analysis and opinion on the dumping of the elvs and the seperate laws which they were made up of, and whether something similar will be adopted afterwards. Macqueen back in the mix will certainly help excite australian rugby again.
rugbyfuture said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:19pm | Report comment
This proves that the Rebels are ultimately, the great hope for rugby in australia.
Sam Taulelei said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:44pm | Report comment
Geez RF, let’s not place too much pressure and expectation on them yet. They haven’t even taken the field and shown what they’re capable of playing. Wait until they play pre season matches next year and the season proper to assess their credentials as the great hope for Australian rugby.
rugbyfuture said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:52pm | Report comment
they’re still there and they’re becoming big, i don’t think its too rash to say. Proving that victoria can get involved with rugby will enable rugby to become a popular national sport (more popular at international level than it is) and pave the way for expansion on the interior (domestic comp).
formeropenside said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:53pm | Report comment
Even better, lets wait until they actually develop players of their own rather than funnelling off talent from elsewhere.
rugbyfuture said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:56pm | Report comment
the article today said that Macqueen wanted to focus on grabbing more talent and putting it back into the club system to build a bit of support and development there too which is great, especially considering technically they dont have to have anything to do with community rugby.
Justin said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:59pm | Report comment
FOS – Vic has been developing players for years. Obviously not on the same scale as NSW/QLD but there is a healthy list of players who learned the game here before being “funneled’ into the other states and the Wallabies.
formeropenside said | January 13th 2010 @ 2:56pm | Report comment
Elsom and Digby are the only current two Wallabies I am aware of (together with Lloyd Johansson off in Italy). All three of those were Queensland schoolboy rugby representatives rather than turning out for Combined States, so I would argue they learned their rugby up here rather than down there.
I think Lealifano from the Brumbies is a Victorian too (and did play for Combined States as a schoolboy as well).
There is no doubt but that the strength of Australian rugby will be further diluted by a 5th “franchise”, and in my view no good will come of it.
Brett McKay said | January 13th 2010 @ 3:02pm | Report comment
correct FOS, Lealiifano made the Aust Schoolboys in consectutive years from Peter Lalor College in Melbourne.
Even by choice of school he should be a prime target for the Rebels…
Justin said | January 13th 2010 @ 3:29pm | Report comment
FOS – They maybe the only current Wobblies but there has been Horua, Palavi, Fitter, Heath and others who learned their rugby in Melbourne. Not all Test players but good Super players.
The Southport School poached some of these guys after U16 National Champs. Just because they played their final year of school in QLD doesnt make them products of their junior pragram.
The poaching scenario wont happen much anymore and with another 4 players from either the AUS A or AUS Schools team this year many will stay and be in the Rebel Academy if they are good enough.
Victoria is more than capable of producing quality players and have been doing so for years.
Bay35Pablo said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:05pm | Report comment
“a spleen of British journalists ” – love it. Send that off the the Oxford dictionary!!!
MacQueen was as much about the business approach and systems he brought to rugby as his coaching skills, and he was always willing to think outside the box. That doesn’t date.
Brett McKay said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:06pm | Report comment
More than anythign Spiro, it’s just great to have someone as inventive and innovative as Rod Mcqueen back in Australian rugby. Ultimately, we all benefit..
Hoy said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:19pm | Report comment
I place this bloke up with Alan Jones in what he did for Aus Rugby.
Love him or loath him, watching Jones through the Rise and Rise of Australian Rugby in the 80s was amazing. He, like McQueen, were ahead of their time in regards to preperation, innovative game play etc.
They both brought great ideas to Australian Rugby, and both had great success.
Poita said | January 14th 2010 @ 3:40pm | Report comment
Alan Jones ????
He took a very good rugby side and blew the World Cup.
He was also responsible for Mark Ella retirng at 25.
Rod Macqueen and Bob Dwyer are the best coaches in Australian rugby with Alan Jones a lucky footnote
Campbell Watts said | January 13th 2010 @ 1:46pm | Report comment
“Anyway, it is history now that in 1996 Macqueen created the ACT Brumbies franchise and made it the most successful Super Rugby franchise. ”
Spiro I think the Crusaders would argue this point!!
Assume you meant most successful AUSTRALIAN Super Rugby franchise.
Jerry said | January 13th 2010 @ 3:44pm | Report comment
As would the Blues. They’ve been up and down, but they’ve still got 3 titles. In fact, on titles alone, the Brumbies would only be equal 3rd.
Mike G said | January 13th 2010 @ 2:12pm | Report comment
This, along with the signings of Waldron & (to a lesser extent Damien Hill), provide the team with a top head office…Surely players from both here & abroad will be keen to take part?
It’s pretty clear that Damien Hill has had possibly the strongest Shute Shield roster in the history of the competition, so before we all get too excited about how great he is, we wait to see how he performs in an even comp, where there are no undergrad spots available to entice players…
ohtani's jacket said | January 13th 2010 @ 2:13pm | Report comment
Man, Spiro’s gonna have some fun gushing over Robbie Deans and Rod Macqueen.
rugbyfuture said | January 13th 2010 @ 2:16pm | Report comment
Rebels urge money-grabbers to stay away
GUY HAND
January 13, 2010 – 3:09PM
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-sport/rebels-urge-moneygrabbers-to-stay-away-20100113-m65c.html
AAP
Melbourne Rebels new coach Rod Macqueen says mercenaries aren’t welcome at the Super 15 rugby union club he will build from the ground up.
Former Wallabies coach Macqueen has been lured out of a near-decade long retirement into a three-year deal to be head coach and director of coaching at the Rebels, who will join the competition in 2011.
But those expecting the Rebels to shower current Wallabies, overseas internationals and would-be rugby league converts with cash have been warned by the World Cup-winning coach – we won’t be showing you the money unless you show us the right culture.
“We don’t want players coming here for the money,” Macqueen said in Melbourne on Wednesday after taking over at the Rebels.
“We don’t want money to be the motivation, we want it to be a consequence of what they do.
“That comes into the sort of culture we want to build here – there’s been a bit of speculation in the paper that has been thrown out recently by some of the (player) managers.
“We won’t be going after players to be the highest bidders. We’ll be going after players who want to come here, who want to be part of it, want to embrace the community, want to embrace Melbourne.”
The Rebels have been linked to several big names, including Brisbane league star Israel Folau, Wallabies vice-captain Berrick Barnes and England captain Phil Vickery.
Macqueen’s appointment is a huge coup for the new franchise, after turning down any number of offers to return to coaching following his retirement from the Wallabies’ job in 2001.
As well as his impeccable coaching pedigree in building the Wallabies into the world’s best during his five-year tenure, Macqueen also has valuable experience in starting up a Super rugby franchise.
He was the foundation coach of the ACT Brumbies, and since stepping away from rugby coaching has built up a raft of successful business interests.
Macqueen said doing some initial consultancy work with those involved in the Rebels’ Super 15 bid re-ignited his passion to coach, saying it was a great opportunity.
“It made me think I’d like to have a bigger involvement, because there’s something special that can happen in this area (Melbourne),” said Macqueen, who will base himself in Melbourne as soon as possible.
“To win you’ve got to have very high standards, you’ve got to put in a lot of hard work, you’ve got to have a good culture, you have to have an intelligent team.
“If we can pay attention to those things, chances are we’ll do well.”
His assistant will be current Sydney University coach Damien Hill.
Macqueen’s appointment follows the Rebels’ signing of Melbourne Storm NRL boss Brian Waldron as chief executive earlier this week.
johnny-boy said | January 13th 2010 @ 4:08pm | Report comment
The gushing over Deans should be well over – please !. Might pay not to get too excited over Macqueen given his time away from the front line but his record is awesome. He gave the All Blacks much grief and would run rings round Henry & Co.
(cant help myself). It might be worth repeating my dream team Wallaby coaching panel suggestion – Macqueen for tactics, Jones for motivation, Dwyer for skills and lots of cold water to quell the egos. Not much room for Deans really other than poncing round in a tracksuit promoting vitamins. He’d better lift his bloody game and give the dickhead selections (like Giteau at 10 !) the flick or he’ll be next. Mitchell in WA is going to be in trouble to.
Poppa69 said | January 18th 2010 @ 2:33am | Report comment
Please, cant you see the development Deans has made to Australian rugby… do you think Pocock would be given the opportunity, most would have still had Smith in the run on side… Your scrum is the strongest its been ALL decade, and the youngsters coming through showed on the NH tour that they are starting to feel comfortable and are learning what top flight rugby is about…
Rome wasnt built in a day, and after 2 years at the helm Id think a lot of Australian rugby fans are becoming excited about the potential in your side.. Sure, a hiccup against Scotland, but is that Deans fault, or the most over rated player in rugby having a poor day with the boot ?
Wavell Wakefield said | January 18th 2010 @ 3:12am | Report comment
Deans has absolutely nothing to do with the Australian scrum.
I don’t think the Scotland hiccup was the biggest issue, more the 3N hiccup and the inherently conservative brand of rugby.
Poppa69 said | January 18th 2010 @ 3:53am | Report comment
My point re the scrum was how well Robinson and Alexander have developed, as head coach surely he deserves some credit for that?
is it all Deans fault though? I mean, they did beat SA in the 3ns, they were leading the Abs in practically all 3 games at half time and got over-run… sure, perhaps the tactics werent quite right for the second half, but he got them to half time leading with the right tactics… ultimately the players couldnt close out the second half..
conservative rugby, well, once the NH got their way and threw out the ELVs without even trialling them all, it was always going to take the SH sides time to re-adjust, hence suiting SA because their style is the most similar to the NH.
Wavell Wakefield said | January 18th 2010 @ 4:05am | Report comment
No, I don’t think Deans deserves any credit for the impovement of Robinson and Alexander for the simple reason that he is not a scrum coach and that he doesn’t coach forwards how to scrummage.
Australia was a conservative side for the best part of the past decade, as was (and is) SA. The ELVs have nothing to do with that. If you watched the Ireland v Australia game you would have noted that Ireland tried to run the ball and that Australia didn’t. Deans had Australia playing conservative rugby under the ELVs and he still did during the recent tour. You should recall that there was more kicking under the ELVs than there was prior to their introduction, and most significantly that the hands in the ruck rule was kicked out by everybody, hence no country trialled the full ELVs. One only has to contrast the backplay of the Lions tour to the most recent 3N to make your boring NH comments redundant. NZ is the only side in the 3N that likes to run the ball.