Dave Rennie is safe as Wallabies coach,Rugby Australia CEO Andy Marinos said.Credit:AP
Rennie is a much more collaborative operator and the arrangement would be temporary,but sources close to the coach on Wednesday indicated the New Zealander would not countenance having Jones foisted upon him.
Nevertheless,the rugby committee are understood to be considering the use of an independent selector and Jones has close and longstanding relationships with Rennie’s two closest allies in Australia:general manager Chris Webb and attack coach Scott Wisemantel,who was Jones’s right-hand man with England in 2018 and 2019.
Jones has been in talks to coach theUSA Eagles on a long-term deal from 2024,but he would also be one of the top three contenders to take over from Rennie if he departs after next year’s tournament, alongside senior Wallabies assistant Dan McKellar and feted Crusaders coach Scott Robertson. Robertson will be in high demand.
Robertson is expected to lose out to Steve Borthwick as the long-term replacement for Jones at England,but will fight hard for a crack at the All Blacks. Sources have also linked Robertson to Irish province Leinster when Leo Cullen’s one-year extension ends at the end of next year.
“If he doesn’t want to come over for a World Cup position with the Wallabies,then it should be foot down by Rugby Australia to sign him to coach the Wallabies[in 2024] and try and win the World Cup in 2027,” Poidevin said.
Wallabies wrecking ball Taniela Tupou injured his Achilles on the spring tour.Credit:Getty
“You’ve got the[British and Irish Lions] series in 2025 and a World Cup in 2027. You’ve got a very structurally sound Super Rugby competition across our region. He’s a guy who has a very high standard on high performance. We’ve got high performance markers starting to appear everywhere in Australian rugby.”
Meanwhile,Marinos revealed the details of the end of season review process looking at the Wallabies’ season,which saw Rennie’s win rate sink to 38 per cent andmore than 40 players sit out Tests due to injury.
The main review will be conducted by former Olympic rower Bo Hansen,who runs a leading consultancy in sports high performance. Hansen was one of the three-member panel that reviewed the Wallabies’ 2019 season and Rugby World Cup campaign,and his team will conduct interviews with players and staff in coming weeks.
Marinos said a second review into the Wallabies’ injury toll would be conducted by former World Rugby chief medical officer Dr Martin Raftery and high-performance consultant Glenn Stewart.
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