The leak that saved Cheika’s job
Jake White’s Australian story has been shelved for a second time after an embarrassing leak cost the World Cup-winning coach a meeting with Rugby Australia (RA).
RA chief executive Raelene Castle cancelled a telephone hook-up with Japanbased White, in which he would have presumably offered his services as an alternative to Wallabies coach Michael Cheika, within 15 hours of the meeting being leaked to the media on Thursday.
The public slap down effectively wipes the former Brumbies coach from a list of potential replacements for Cheika, who is in Lebanon and will return to Sydney at the end of the week.
The development came as Fairfax Media learned that Rugby Australia boss Ben Whitaker met with Scotland’s Australian director of rugby, Scott Johnson, in the UK earlier this month.
Johnson is understood to have let RA know he is not interested in a head coaching role but would come home in a heartbeat to fill a similar, overarching role to the one he has performed for Scottish rugby for the past five years.
The timing of any potential move in that direction is unclear, but both factors suggest that RA will resist widespread calls to sack Cheika at its December 10 board meeting and look at either replacing one or more of his assistants, make the case for no change at all or install Johnson in a supervisory role as early as next year.
In any case, Cheika will fly home to an uncertain landscape. Whitaker is undertaking a wide-ranging review of the Wallabies’ season – the team’s worst since 1958 – and will present it to the board ahead of its December 10 meeting.
‘‘Rugby Australia is conducting a review process at the end of the Qantas Wallabies season, which is understandably attracting additional attention due to the challenging year the team has faced,’’ Castle said.
‘‘We acknowledge and understand the frustrations of Wallabies fans over recent results and we are completing a thorough review ahead of an important year for the team which culminates with the Rugby World Cup in Japan.
‘‘The review commenced within the Wallaby team environment immediately after the match against England last weekend, with players remaining in camp to complete their end of season reviews prior to their departure from the UK on Tuesday.
‘‘The outcomes of the full review will be presented at the December meeting of the Rugby Australia board with [Cheika] in attendance.’’
Cheika and Whitaker are setting out on a roadshow together next week, taking their World Cup year proposals to the four Super Rugby teams to broker agreement on a proposed 10-day camp in January and a 20 per cent reduction in playing and training loads for Wallabies players.
Though Castle and RA chairman Cameron Clyne have consistently backed Cheika, the circumstances and timing of the review, in addition to the leaked White meeting, could combine to produce an explosive environment at RA headquarters.
‘‘Jake White approached Rugby Australia and asked to have a conversation,’’ a RA spokesman said.
‘‘Rugby Australia did not approach him but agreed to speak with him but have decided not to proceed with the call.’’
The knock-back suggests further pressure will be applied to Cheika’s assistants, with attack coach Stephen Larkham, defence coach Nathan Grey and forwards coach Simon Raiwalui in limbo. Skills coach Mick Byrne must also come under scrutiny after little noticeable improvement in the Wallabies’ basic skills this season.
Such a course of action will be hard to justify given Cheika has had ample opportunities to shake up his coaching staff and has presided over a turnstile-like Wallabies lineup over the past four years.
But it may be the politically more palatable course of action and will certainly save the organisation the considerable sum of money required to pay out Cheika’s contract, which runs until the end of next year.
– Sydney Morning Herald