Rebuilding Ulster will be a huge job
LAST week, interim coach Richie Murphy told an Ulster press conference that he was house-hunting in Belfast.
After the madness of the last few days, I wouldn’t blame the Ireland Under-20 coach if he deleted the Propertypal app off his phone and drove back over the border.
On Saturday, Ulster were involved in a crazy game in Durban that saw the province suffer a 22-12 defeat to the Sharks in Murphy’s first game in charge.
While no one can doubt Ulster’s effort levels, the scoreline flattered the losing side who carelessly coughed up the ball on countless occasions. There was also a disappointing lack of discipline in the latter stages of the game that saw Ulster finish the match with just 13 men.
If they play like that against the Stormers this weekend they could be on the wrong end of a big scoreline. Then, yesterday — with Murphy and the team still in South Africa — the IRFU confirmed that Jonny Petrie had left his role as Ulster CEO.
Petrie’s future had been the subject of much speculation, but it’s only three weeks ago that he staged a press conference and held a meeting with supporters. He certainly didn’t give anyone the impression he was on the brink of leaving the club.
At the time, Petrie told the press that Ulster’s finances required a ‘period of readjustment’, although he outlined that he did not believe their would be a ‘mass exodus’ of Ulster’s top talent. Either way, Petrie will not be the man to lead Ulster through that sticky transitional period.
Whoever replaces Petrie has a hell of a job on their hands. As does Murphy, assuming he hangs around beyond the summer. With a reduced budget, and Stuart Mccloskey expected to follow Billy Burns out the door, it’s hard to see how Ulster’s fortunes will improve anytime soon.