Exclusive: Rennie set for Japan deal in latest twist to post-RWC coaching drama

Three months ago Dave Rennie said he would take matters into his own hands if he was not offered an extension deal by Rugby Australia beyond the World Cup. Now, Rennie seemingly has taken proactive action to secure his future.

The fourth-year Wallabies coach, who has a 38 per cent winning record, is moving closer to inking a deal in the Japanese League One competition.

While no deal has been signed yet, it’s understood by The Roar he is set to join his long-time mentor Wayne Smith at Kobe Steelers.

Former Chiefs player Nick Holten was elevated this season to the head coaching role at Kobe, but it’s believed it is likely just for the one year before Rennie comes in.

Ricoh Black Rams had been thrown up as another destination, but it’s believed that Rennie’s intended target is Kobe.

Rennie is set to join a number of New Zealand stars at the club, including incoming All Blacks forwards Brodie Retallick and Ardie Savea who will join the Japanese side following the World Cup. Retallick played under Rennie at the Chiefs.  

Any announcement is likely months away, with Japanese clubs generally coy on making deals public before the ink hits the paper.

It’s understood up to five to six head coaching jobs are available in Japan for the 2024 season, with current All Blacks coach Ian Foster likely to head north regardless of the outcome of this year’s World Cup.

Dave Rennie is set to head to Japan to continue his coaching career following the World Cup in 2024. Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

It makes the international head coaching landscape even more intriguing, with New Zealand Rugby privately working media and public awareness of the fact that former Highlanders Super Rugby coaching pair Jamie Joseph and Tony Brown, who will lead Japan’s campaign this year, will be available for 2024.

It means Crusaders coach Scott Robertson, who has won six straight Super Rugby titles since taking over from Todd Blackadder in 2017, might not get the All Blacks job he so dearly cherishes.

Rugby Australia, meanwhile, are watching on closely.

If, indeed, Robertson misses out on the All Blacks job and the NZR move on Joseph quickly, RA could look to pounce on the former All Black.

Last June, Robertson quipped he would have no issues surfing in Coogee or Noosa.

Some within RA highly respect Robertson, including board member Daniel Herbert who has known the former back-rower for two decades. The duo played alongside one another at French club Perpignan in 2003.

There does, however, remain a strong school of thought that heading into a golden four-year cycle Down Under, which includes a Lions series in 2025 and a home World Cup in 2027, that the Wallabies should be coached by an Australian, particularly after four years under New Zealand-born Rennie.

Eddie Jones shakes hands with Nic White ahead of England’s series against the Wallabies in July, 2022. Photo: Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

Eddie Jones has already had conversations with Rugby Australia officials, but it’s believed he is strongly weighing up a return to Japan to take over from Joseph with the Brave Blossoms.

In an interview with The Guardian, the highly respected international coach said he was “ready” to get back into the international coaching cauldron and would look to have his future sorted in the next “two to three” weeks.

Jones confirmed he had a “couple” of options on the table, but said he would base his decision on where he could make the most value over the next “four or five years”.

It was coaching the Brave Blossoms where Jones reignited his international coaching career, leading Japan to the greatest upset in World Cup history as they toppled South Africa in Brighton in 2015.

The victory, which was followed by another two in their World Cup pool, led to the Rugby Football Union buying out Jones from his new deal with the Stormers and offering the Australian the head coaching job.

Four years after England failed to get out of the pool at home, Jones took England to the World Cup final. Along the way, he led them to 18 straight Test victories to equal the tier-one record.

Jones’ winning record, which saw him finish as England’s most successful coach (73 per cent), has him favoured by others at RA, including chairman Hamish McLennan.

Jones’ proven international record is highly valued, while any move to appoint someone without international coaching experience comes with an element of risk.

The former Randwick coach does, however, have a number of detractors, particularly in Queensland.

Rennie was moving closer to a contract extension last July, but the Wallabies’ failure to close out a series victory over Jones’ coached England saw conversations stall.

An underwhelming Rugby Championship campaign meant contract negotiations were delayed before the Wallabies’ Spring Tour.

It led to Rennie candidly expressing that he would look to settle his future by January, regardless of whether that included staying with the Wallabies.

“The challenge for all coaches around the world is you can’t sit on your hands and wait until November next year to decide what you’re going to do the following season,” Rennie said ahead of their five-Test Spring Tour.

“It’ll get to the stage where, very early next year, I’ll have to make a decision as to what I’m doing beyond 23.”

Rennie added: “At this level, there’s pressure on everyone. What’s happening a lot at international rugby is that it’s so tight. It’s not lost on me that we’ve had results that we should have won that we haven’t won so in the end that falls on me.”

As the Wallabies reached the end of a frustrating season marred by injuries and inconsistent form, Rennie accepted conversations with RA had stalled. The change in the wind came after the Wallabies lost to Italy in Florence.

“No, I haven’t had any discussions around beyond next year. The only discussions I had, which were quite a while back, were that I’m here until the end of the World Cup and that’s the plan,” Rennie said ahead of their final Test of the year against Wales.

Dave Rennie is on the hunt for a new attack coach after Scott Wisemantel (L) resigned last week. Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Rennie and his Wallabies coaching team regrouped for the first time this year on the Gold Coast on Sunday ahead of a four-day camp.

They will be joined by their 44-man training squad, which includes injured overseas-based duo Quade Cooper and Samu Kerevi.

The Wallabies were rocked by the news that respected assistant Scott Wisemantel, who was the only coach in Rennie’s team with World Cup experience, had resigned last week for “family and business reasons”.

The Wallabies won’t rush to replace him.

It’s believed Rennie will spend time with senior players to get an understanding of what kind of attack coach they want during the career-defining World Cup campaign.

The Wallabies remain one of the great bolters at this year’s World Cup, with their form extremely hard to gauge given the extraordinary injury toll suffered in 2022.

But given their relatively easy pool and the fact that they will miss playing a top four World Rugby nation, the Wallabies should be aiming for a semi-final finish at least.