Foley Dumped

[DazloT]

Interesting comment from Sinders regarding interest received from other coaches. Perhaps the reason the reason for the early exit?

Thankyou Foles for the last 4 years and always being approachable and a genuinely nice bloke.

[westies man]

Professional sport anywhere is results driven.I for one am happy to see the back of Stonefish unlike all the people who were bagging the crap out of him 6 weeks ago and who are now all feigning shock horror.
He ain't the only one going folks so stay tuned.Clean out needed to happen.
Kitchen Sink Blackadder Throw Anyone.

[westies man]

I hope Tom Fearn has his phone close by, it must be ringing soon

It's rung

[GIGS20]

Not so sure about the Blackadder call. Kiwi coaches don't seem to be that successful in Oz, can't figure out why.

[sittingbison]

.... Kiwi coaches don't seem to be that successful in Oz...

Dingo?

thanks for coming over after the braindead debacle foles, and attempting to change things around especially in the management processes. Thanks for 2014.

[choice]

Off course in public professional players support the coach for the same reasons a coach supports his players. In private it is possibly quite different.
Players and coaches are not appointed because they are nice guys but for what they bring to the team, and if that is not working then they have to go.
Time to move on.

[Jeansyjive]

Foley positon at headcoach was untenable, the results have been too poor and very little progress shown. Keeping Foley would risk player retention and recruitment, memberships and probably sponsorship.

On the 6PR rumourfile this morning they had a source saying Blackadder is the new coach. Not sure how reliable that is.

[MI5_Dog]

Foley’s sacking could hurt Hodgson

Nick Taylor - The West Australian on June 17, 2016, 12:01 am

Dumped Western Force coach Michael Foley was devastated when told he would not finish the season in charge of the ailing Super Rugby club, a decision that now puts the future of captain Matt Hodgson in doubt.

Foley, whose four-year reign came to an end despite having a year to run on his contract, said the job of lifting the club had become a cause but he was circumspect about the decision.

He has been under pressure since finishing with the wooden spoon last year and managing just two wins this season to sit bottom of the Australian Super conference and third bottom overall with a competition-low 21 tries from 12 games.

“I would have liked to have been there for another season. I care deeply about the place, I’m very passionate about the job. It became a cause,” Foley said.

“The reality is that if the people that made the decision believe the best thing is that I’m not there then so be it.”

Foley was told on Wednesday morning that he had been sacked after a decision that was driven by the RugbyWA board and supported by the Australian Rugby Union. He told the players yesterday morning.

“It was hard, a bit sad, but as I said to them, I can come in here and be sombre, I can come in here and be bitter or I can come in here and celebrate the good times we had,” he said.

“I talked about the times I had with them. It was about the challenges we faced. We didn’t always get it right but we never stopped trying.”

Meanwhile Hodgson, a strong Foley supporter who was confident of re-signing for another season before the decision, is now pondering his own future.

“It’s still up in the air. It’s a tough pill to swallow. I wanted to play another season with Foles, but this will definitely not be my last season,” Hodgson said.

“I hope to be at the Force but if they decide I’m not the right fit … I’m not hanging up the boots, I’ll play football somewhere.

“The playing group is disappointed with the decision but we know Foles will want us to go out and play our best football for him and play to represent his legacy.

“We know we come under review but we felt that we could have had him at the helm for the final three games and finish on a good note together.

“Coaches are often judged solely on their win-loss ratio. A lot more should come into account, the way he has created Wallabies and got the best out of players but also what he has done off the field. That should be remembered.”

The decision comes two weeks after an ARU takeover of the Force as the club struggled on-field and financially.

Force chief executive Mark Sinderberry said it was important to make an early decision to give the organisation “clear air” in looking for a replacement who will need to be in place before November when pre-season for 2017 begins.

“The new coach has got to be the right fit. We will start defining the qualities we are looking for,” Sinderberry said.

“It’s about looking at the potential for the future and whether we have got the right structures in place for the future.”

Sinderberry will continue contract negotiations with players including Hodgson, Kyle Godwin, who is being chased by both the Brumbies and Waratahs, and Nathan Charles, who could move overseas.

Assistant coach Dave Wessels will take over for the final three games of the season.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/sp...-hurt-hodgson/

[MI5_Dog]

NICK TAYLOR: Next coach must attract players

The reign of yet another Western Force coach has come to an inglorious end.

First it was John Mitchell who left for the Lions in controversial circumstances, then Richard Graham went out of the door under a cloud midway through the 2012 season to join the Reds.

And now Michael Foley has been dumped with three matches of the season remaining.

Perhaps it was inevitable given recent comments made by both the Force and ARU executive about the end-of-season review and the need for results.

And in the end the divorce was probably best handled swiftly rather than dragged out to a long and painful conclusion.

Foley was devastated, as were some of his players. There is no doubt he was fully committed and cared about them and the organisation.

But he is also a realist and despite putting on a brave face after every loss, he knew it all meant little if he could not produce results.

He did as well as anybody could have done with a limited squad, but the wooden spoon last year and looking like finishing bottom of the Australian conference this season was not good enough for a club whose own future was under a cloud.

He had not lost the support or allegiance of the player group, with captain Matt Hodgson saying the side would dedicate the last three games to Foley and “play to represent his legacy”.

It should be remembered that when Foley was appointed he was to have been director of coaching in charge of the rugby program, a role that would have suited his organisational and management strengths, but financial restrictions meant a restructure and he was made head coach.

There will now be the inevitable “worldwide search” for a replacement coach.

There will be plenty of rumour and speculation about who should be put in charge but whoever they decide on the Force need someone who can not only get results, but also lift the ailing profile of the club and have the ability to retain and recruit the best players available.

In the short term it is up to stand-in coach and Foley assistant Dave Wessels, who has taken control temporarily, to lift the spirits of the squad and squeeze some success out of the last three games.

Possible candidates would include former Brumbies coach Laurie Fisher, now at Gloucester, and Jake White, who is in charge of Montpelier in France.

Joint head coach of the Reds Matt O’Connor, former Wallabies mentor Ewen McKenzie and ex-Force assistant coach John Muvihill are others in the mix.

[MI5_Dog]

Possible candidates would include former Brumbies coach Laurie Fisher, now at Gloucester, and Jake White, who is in charge of Montpelier in France.

Joint head coach of the Reds Matt O’Connor, former Wallabies mentor Ewen McKenzie and ex-Force assistant coach John Muvihill are others in the mix.

I doubt Fisher, White or McKenzie are interested.
I'm not interested in O'Connor or Muvihill
Blackadder would be great except I suspect he'd have the same trouble Dingo Deans had in that rugby intelligence is not ingrained in Australian players like it is for NZ players and as a result the Aussie need a lot more structure in their play.

[Kept One]

I read somewhere that Todd Blackadder will shortly be announced as the coach for Bath.

[Alison]

And of course the east coast hacks have again linked Stuart Lancaster with the Force......

[Herbasimplex]

would anyone of significant stature be interested in coaching the force? The ARU would need to make it worthwhile by throwing a fair amount of Benjamin's at said coach and emphasising a blank cheque in terms of coaching staff and recruitment.

Would think that link or fisher would be the best options, not sure how realistic that is though.

[MI5_Dog]

I don't know about significant stature but it's not exactly the poisoned chalice people make it out to be.
If you have a fairly good reputation and you manage to get the Force to mid table people will wonder at your skill
If you can't get them off the bottom of the table then people will assume that it's due to the players or other factors
basically it's a win win

[andrewg]

Wayne Smith from The Australian goes a bit further than Nick Taylor
All of the highlighting is mine.

Western Force players vow to play for Michael Foley after sacking
• The Australian
• June 17, 2016
• Wayne Smith

The Western Force will play their final three matches of the Super Rugby season for Michael Foley, who was sacked with immediate effect by the club on Wednesday.

The players are devastated that Foley, who has been head coach for the past four seasons since leaving the Waratahs, would not be allowed to see out the remainder of the season with the side.

Assistant coach David Wessels will continue to coach the side on an interim basis.

“I just met with the players and they are fully supportive of Foley,” Force captain Matt Hodgson said.
“We have Foles’ back in this. We know that’s what he would have wanted. We’ve got matches against the Cheetahs (away), Stormers (home) and Brumbies (away), and we’ll be trying to turn the competition into a washing machine.”

The fact Foley won only 18 matches out of 60, 30 per cent, meant his position ultimately became untenable, but Hodgson said that was only one measure of his success — and far from the most accurate one.

“You can see from our squad that everyone is blossoming under Foles. We have three players in the Test squad (Dane Haylett-Petty, Ben McCalman and Luke Morahan) and a fourth player knocking on the door, Adam Coleman,” said Hodgson.

“Dane is a perfect example. He was just a normal Super Rugby player before he was coached by him. Now he’s one of the best players in the Test side.

“It goes down to local players like Harry Scoble and Richard Hardwick. Everyone is a better footballer because they have been coached by him.”

Given that the odds were always stacked against the Force in terms of having to pay “overs” to attract players to Perth while still staying within the salary cap, and then saddling the side with the most onerous travel schedule by far of any of the Australian franchises, Foley was always battling to stay on level terms.

Frankly, it’s highly doubtful whether any other coach could have done better.

Given that Foley had a year left to run on his contract, it raises the question of why he was not moved into a director of rugby role where he could continue working with the players, but Force chief executive Mark Sinderberry felt that clear air was needed to give his replacement a chance to establish himself.

Sinderberry rejected suggestions that the ARU, which now runs the Force in an alliance with Rugby WA, had taken the decision that Foley should go.

“The decision started here,” Sinderberry said. “We all acknowledge the challenges Foley faced but how was it going to improve?”

Even while changes are being made in the west, the consultancy group Accenture is continuing its review of SANZAAR and it remains to be seen how Australia will respond if, for example, it recommends one franchise be jettisoned to accommodate Japan in the Australian conference.

ARU chief operations officer Rob Clarke said the national body’s objective was to create five franchises that were competitive, not just two or three with the remainder off the pace.
“The other goal is to improve the Force without detracting for the competitiveness of the others.”

Meanwhile, it is looking increasingly like Hodgson himself has made his last appearance for the Force, with the club having made no move to re-sign the 34-year-old.

“I don’t think I’m finished playing rugby,” said Hodgson, who can point to George Smith signing a two-year deal with the Reds that will take him through to 38.

“My first option would be to play with the Force but if they don’t offer me a contract, I’ll look elsewhere.”

As Oscar Wilde might put it, losing one faithful servant might be regarded as a misfortune, losing two looks like carelessness.



What he adds about Matt Hodgson's situation is of real concern.

If that's how the Captain is being treated then how does that leave the other players who have no assurred future beyond 2016?
They include:
Chris Heiberg
Guy Millar
Nathan Charles
Heath Tessman
Angus Cottrell
Chris Alcock
Kane Koteka
Alby Mathewson
Kyle Godwin
Ammon Matuatu
Albert Nikoro
Luke Morahan
Brad Lacey

Many of these are very marketable players with a good future.