WRU lose battle to keep Gibbes
The uncertainty surrounding Jono Gibbes’ future has finally been clarified by Waikato and La Rochelle after a strange month of puzzling revelations.
The Waikato Rugby Union (WRU) confirmed yesterday they had agreed to release the former Mooloos captain from his role as head coach in November following the 2018 Mitre 10 Cup.
La Rochelle announced the appointment of the 41-year-old as their director of rugby for the next four seasons on Thursday and Waikato had to concede that Gibbes wouldn’t be hanging around his former stomping ground for longer than six months.
The WRU said in a statement that negotiations over the terms of his release, which will include compensation for Waikato, are ongoing after the pull of a lucrative deal in French rugby was obviously too good for Gibbes to turn down.
The eight-test All Black was announced as Waikato’s new head coach on a two-year deal in March following Sean Botherway’s resignation. He was said to be returning home for family reasons
But the speculation about his future sparked when the former Chiefs stalwart met with La Rochelle officials on France’s west coast in May just before his final match in charge of Ulster.
This appeared to surprise WRU officials as chief executive Blair Foote said: ‘‘If something has changed, we know nothing about that’’, when telling Stuff they were expecting Gibbes to start work with the union by the end of May.
But, after his last match as Ulster head coach, Gibbes’ future remained unclear when he wouldn’t clarify whether his next destination would be La Rochelle or Waikato in a prickly post-match interview.
Then Waikato shared a picture of Gibbes back at FMG Stadium Waikato, flanked by assistant coaches Nathan White and Roger Randle, which appeared to confirm he would be sticking with the Mooloos.
But then La Rochelle revealed they were still searching for a new director of rugby when announcing that former All Blacks lock Jason Eaton had taken on a coaching role following his retirement.
It wasn’t long before Gibbes was linked with that vacancy. The French club then confirmed his appointment and revealed in a statement that recruiting him was their top priority after the departure of former head coach Patrice Collazo.
Foote admitted they regretted losing Gibbes but also looked at the potential benefits of Waikato and La Rochelle beginning a partnership ‘‘to enhance player and coach training and development’’.
‘‘Both organisations recognise the calibre of his coaching skills and his unique ability to inspire players,’’ Foote said in a statement.
‘‘Still, we are grateful Jono – who calls the Waikato home – has committed to seeing the union through the 2018 Mitre 10 Cup and to helping us build towards regaining our rightful position in the premiership.’’