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How 'a clusterf***' London Irish AGM damaged 'clueless' Woodward
How England World Cup winner Clive Woodward was unceremoniously dumped as boss at London Irish in 1997 has been vividly recounted by Willie Anderson in a newly written autobiography. The former Ireland skipper gained notoriety in his own playing career for marching his national team into the maelstrom of an All Blacks haka in 1989 as well as being arrested by the Argentine military junta in 1980 for taking a flag while on tour with the Penguins invitational side.
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Brilliantly written in conjunction with Brendan Fanning, Crossing The Line is a rollicking read about a no-nonsense second row who was capped on 27 occasions by Ireland before embarking on a varied coaching career that included stints with Dungannon, London Irish, Leinster, Scotland and his native Ulster.
Anderson retired from coaching last year shortly after his 65th birthday and he spent the past year committing his life and times to a book that is being published this month by Reach Sport (click here to purchase). Among the many entertaining, insightful stories contained in The Flag, the Haka and Facing My Life is Anderson’s short-lived experience of working under Woodward at London Irish in the first year that the league in England went fully professional.
Woodward ultimately went on to lead England to 2003 World Cup glory but his experience at London Irish wasn’t as successful as he tempestuously quit in June 1996 after accusing the club of racism and while he soon returned to take charge of the team for the start of the 1996/97 campaign, his time at the Exiles ended acrimoniously midway through the season with new assistant coach Anderson taking over.
It’s a shafting now colourfully recounted by Anderson, who ultimately branded Woodward a “clueless” coach who was out of his depth in trying to run Irish as a newly professionalised club. Anderson took up the story with his own appointment in 1996 as an assistant and he detailed what quickly transpired to result in him becoming the head coach.
Should be some great stories told in Willie Anderson’s new book ???? pic.twitter.com/Wc0IEAzS6r
— Ulster Rugby Heritage (@SUFTUMHeritage) August 30, 2021
“The initial approach from Sunbury was to assist the head coach Clive Woodward. He had brought them back to the First Division after they had been relegated under Hika Reid, the former All Black hooker. This was before Clive was knighted, but he was a hero in Sunbury the way they raced back into the top flight scoring tries left, right and centre. The first thing Clive had done when he met the players for training was to take the meeting out of a dark, dingy bar on the ground floor of the clubhouse and out the door onto the pitch. It was like ‘Open’ was to be his policy.
“I liked that when I heard it. Inside two seasons he had built up the squad and a stream of Ireland’s best talent were on their way across the water thanks to another transformation: rugby going professional. So season 1996/97 would be the first full-on season for rugby as a pro sport. The IRFU weren’t keen to get on board with it but a load of their best players were mad for action.
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“If that wasn’t enough there would be another turn in the road before I arrived. The London Irish AGM in summer 1996 turned into a clusterf***. Having gone along on the night expecting to be carried shoulder-high from the room, instead Clive ended up walking out in disgust. Some of the older brigade were accusing him of trying to change the club into little England. And he in turn was accusing them of racism over their rules and regulations.
“If you’ve ever been part of a club you’ll appreciate the AGM can either put you to sleep or set you on a path to war. Gary Halpin had to run out after Clive to try and drag him back into the meeting. He wasn’t for turning. At least not in the carpark.
When everyone calmed down Clive withdrew his resignation and agreed to continue, but it never looked like lasting… The sheer scale of the transition from an amateur club to a professional club needed a full-time team of people on the ground. We weren’t even close.
“Clive was unhappy with the way it ended for him at Sunbury. But he’s an intelligent man and I’d be surprised if he didn’t figure what was behind the door he opened by bringing me in. His head was already half-turned by his business commitments, and pretty soon the club were showing him the door. It happened quickly and brutally. He arrived for training in Sunbury one night and the club CEO Duncan Leopold met him in the corridor to the changing room.
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“Duncan looked like a man dancing on hot coals as he waited for Clive to arrive. When the club had asked me would I be interested in taking over from him I didn’t suggest we could tweak a few things here and there but continue under the new boss. I said yes, immediately, I’ll fill the gap.
“Clive was a big picture guy who had no idea how to fill in the background. When I spoke to him about rugby detail, about planning and getting everyone aligned, about how we would actually play the game, he just zoned out. No interest. That took me by surprise. When there was no sign of it changing I realised we were on different paths.
“Years later, when I looked at the England set-up for the Rugby World Cup in 2003, you could see how he prospered in a high-powered environment with so many experienced players. In fairness to him, he put that operation together and managed it well. But as a technical rugby coach, he was clueless.”
LIONS TOUR FALLOUT:
Sexton on being in London on the same July day Marcus Smith got his surprise mid-tour call… and what he made of Warren Gatland's early May criticism of his durability#LionsRugby
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) September 1, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
Exeter were thumped by 38 points. And they only had to hop on a train.
29 Go to commentsI am De Groot.
1 Go to commentsHad hoped you might write an article on this game, Nick. It’s a good one. Things have not gone as smoothly for ROG since beating Leinster last year at the Aviva in the CC final. LAR had the Top 14 Final won till Raymond Rhule missed a simple tackle on the excellent Ntamack, and Toulouse reaped the rewards of just staying in the fight till the death. Then the disruption of the RWC this season. LAR have not handled that well, but they were not alone, and we saw Pau heading the Top 14 table at one stage early season. I would think one of the reasons for the poor showing would have to be that the younger players coming through, and the more mature amongst the group outside the top 25/30, are not as strong as would be hoped for. I note that Romain Sazy retired at the end of last season. He had been with LAR since 2010, and was thus one of their foundation players when they were promoted to Top 14. Records show he ended up with 336 games played with LAR. That is some experience, some rock in the team. He has been replaced for the most part by Ultan Dillane. At 30, Dillane is not young, but given the chances, he may be a fair enough replacement for Sazy. But that won’be for more than a few years. I honestly know little of the pathways into the LAR setup from within France. I did read somewhere a couple of years ago that on the way up to Top 14, the club very successfully picked up players from the academies of other French teams who were not offered places by those teams. These guys were often great signings…can’t find the article right now, so can’t name any….but the Tadgh Beirne type players. So all in all, it will be interesting to see where the replacements for all the older players come from. Only Lleyd’s and Rhule from SA currently, both backs. So maybe a few SA forwards ?? By contrast, Leinster have a pretty clear line of good players coming through in the majority of positions. Props maybe a weak spot ? And they are very fleet footed and shrewd in appointing very good coaches. Or maybe it is also true that very good coaches do very well in the Leinster setup. So, Nick, I would fully concurr that “On the evidence of Saturday’s semi-final between the two clubs, the rebuild in the Bay of Biscay is going to take longer than it is on the east coast of Ireland”
6 Go to commentsWhat was the excuse for the other knockout blowouts then? Does the result not prove the Saints were just so much better? Wise call to put your eggs in one basket when you’ve got 2 comps simultaneously finishing.
29 Go to commentsReally hope Kuruvoli and his partner rock the Canes.
1 Go to commentsI wonder what impact Samson has had on their attack, as the team seems less prone to trundle it up the middle, take the tackle and then trundle it up again. I lost faith in the coach last year as the Rebelss looked like a 2nd/3rd rate South African team. I also disliked Gordon standing back, often ignored as the forward battle went on and on. Maybe its our Aussie way of not getting off our A***’s until the enemy is at the gate.
83 Go to commentsThanks for the write up. Great to see the Rebs winning, I am a little interested in how they will go against the remaining kiwi teams, I think they’ve only played Hurricanes and Highlanders but how great to see these players performing!! I also see Parling has a job beyond June 30! A good move by RA? Also how do you fix the Rebels previously scratchy defence?
83 Go to commentsbe smart - go black
13 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
13 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
4 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
29 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
4 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
4 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
13 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
6 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
6 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
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