Michael Cheika reportedly agrees to coach Wallabies

[shasta]

I'm taking up knitting

Golf going THAT bad?

[brokendown gunfighter]

knit one,pearl one



miss a farkin putt

as an aside- went up to joondulup yesrday with some mates & in the four par 3 holes I scored 3 birdies and 1 par==not even professionals usually would do that


unfortunately for the other 14 holes i was wofeful


such is life

[GIGS20]

knit one,pearl one



miss a farkin putt

No bloody wonder, your hands are full!

[Rex Messup]

I'm taking up knitting

cardigan for your knees or Balaclava to redeem your superannuation losses?

[brokendown gunfighter]

good thinking Rex-but I think the bank know me too well.even with the balaclava!

[travelling_gerry]

Negotiations between Waratahs coach Michael Cheika and the Australian Rugby Union have stalled over the amount of autonomy he would have as Wallabies coach.

Fairfax Media understands Cheika also wants to have his own coaching support staff in place before a contract is finalised.

The stall in negotiations began when Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham declared himself unavailable for an assistant's role with the Wallabies and doubts emerged about whether Western Force coach Michael Foley will join as forwards coach.

Calling the shots: Michael Cheika addresses the Waratahs this year.
Calling the shots: Michael Cheika addresses the Waratahs this year. Photo: Getty Images
Meanwhile, there are also concerns in some circles that ARU chief executive Bill Pulver has been rushed into making an appointment and that he should have considered naming an interim coach for the Wallabies' northern tour that departs on Friday.

Advertisement
With Cheika set to take over from Ewen McKenzie, the consequences are potentially wide-ranging. Besides the issue of settling on who joins Cheika at the Wallabies, there is also the question of what happens to those staff who worked under McKenzie and don't feature in Cheika's plans. Cheika is unlikely to roll over and be told who his support staff will be.

Furthermore, Cheika still aims to fulfil his third year as coach of the Waratahs, who won this year's Super Rugby title. And the organisation is determined to keep him.

Meanwhile, the clock is ticking towards the Wallabies' scheduled 4.50pm departure on Friday for London and the start of their five-game tour of Europe.

Pulver's handling of the crisis that engulfed the Wallabies has come under criticism, especially since McKenzie's sudden resignation following the one-point loss to the All Blacks in Brisbane.

The ARU is hoping an announcement on Cheika's appointment as McKenzie's replacement will be made as soon as possible. It had hoped to make the announcement on Tuesday, but with talks and negotiations continuing, it was not expected to happen before Wednesday at the earliest.

Meanwhile, the situation is far from ideal for the players, who don't know for certain who their coach will be. The players are yet to be officially told that they will be touring as no squad has been named, and it is unlikely it will be until after Cheika's appointment.

"Our first priority is to appoint the head coach and then name him and the squad together," an ARU spokesperson said on Tuesday.

The Rugby Union Players' Association said it did not want to inflame an already unsettled environment by pointing the finger at anyone so close to the tour.

"There is not much purpose us jumping up and down adding to the crisis saying, 'The sky has fallen in', because everybody else knows that it has. That's not going to solve the problem," RUPA chief executive Greg Harris said on Tuesday.

However, Harris said the crisis that had engulfed the Wallabies and led to McKenzie's resignation had highlighted a need for the ARU to implement better structures.

"Our interests are common," he said. "They need to get the thing resolved to give the players the best opportunity to be successful.

"The question mark here goes back to what we raised in an overall assessment of what the high-performance program is in Australia, and benchmarking off other football codes.

"And that's not going to be done between now and when the boys leave. As far as the short-term problems of the ARU – let them get on with the business about managing the game and getting that sorted.

"But what is of concern is, are we giving our players the best opportunity to perform as well as they possibly can? The answer would have to be, in the current environment, a massive question mark of where we currently are."


http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-union/mi...21-119jo1.html

[travelling_gerry]

Western Force coach knocks back Wallabies role

[Herbasimplex]

Have to admire cheika, he is playing the game right. He has got the ARU bent over with their pants down and can name his demands and price. We might yet see the wallabies playing in sky blue again

[Invictus]

The interesting thing is that, from my reading, very few fans (and fewer journos) have mentioned the role of RUPA in this sordid mess. They are one of the ARU's fundamental problems IMHO.

[travelling_gerry]

And Player Managers.

[The InnFORCEr]

Will be announced at 12.30pm EDST

[hertryk]

Has Foles definitely declined? For Mr Cheika to coach both surely couldn't possibly work? Unless he coaches the same team as Wallabies & Tahs! In that case Tahlabies would be the new name.....he can't have his cake and eat it...???Crikey what a mess!

[tdevil]

Will be announced at 12.30pm EDST

live feed: http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/...5faf663b251663

[Herbasimplex]

Confirmed in Q's that he will still be the coach of the tah's next year.

[UNCLE BOOG]

that was a good question!...
some bloke asking Bill Pullover why the ARU is in disarray, specifically NOT the playing squad, but "you" and the ARU. Nice.