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Leicester Tigers general manager to depart club

By Ian Cameron
Leigh Jones poses for a portrait during the Leicester Tigers squad photo call for the 2021-22 Gallagher Premiership Rugby season at Oval Park, Oadby on August 31, 2021 in Leicester, England. (Photo by Pat Elmont/Getty Images)

Leicester Tigers have confirmed that general manager Leigh Jones will be departing the club in the summer.

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Jones, who joined Tigers in May 2021, previously held positions with the Hong Kong Rugby Union as National Coach Development Manager, Head Coach, and later as the Head of High Performance. He also contributed to the Japanese national team’s defense and breakdown at the 2015 Rugby World Cup.

Before his tenure at HKRU, Jones served in coaching roles at Ebbw Vale, Newport, Newport Gwent Dragons, and the Welsh Rugby Union senior team. He notably led the Wales ‘A’ program under Sir Graham Henry.

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As the first General Manager at Leicester Tigers, Jones oversaw off-field performance aspects, including the management of the Oval Park facility, operational processes and procedures at the training ground, and the establishment of cultural and performance standards throughout the rugby program, including the academy and senior squads.

During his time at the club, the senior squad achieved the title of Gallagher Premiership Champions in his first season and reached the quarter-finals of the Heineken Champions Cup in consecutive campaigns. They fell short of back-to-back Premiership Finals by a single game.

Additionally, the academy program secured a third-place finish in this season’s Premiership Under-18 League.

Speaking about his time at the club, Jones said: “It has been an interesting and enjoyable two years, transitioning back to the UK from Hong Kong into, what was, a new format for me personally in a competition of the Premiership’s standing.”

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“It’s been a pleasure and privilege to work with some great staff, players and coaches at Leicester Tigers, helping to establish what I now believe to be a truly integrated and harmonious training platform from which players and coaches can maximise potential.

“While the work that you do goes largely un-noticed, it proves very important in the daily running of the rugby platform in respect of both the ‘here and now’ and also having a keen eye on the future; introducing and maximising systems, structures and player pathways to safeguard the future of the club.

“It has been a great thrill to work closely with the coaching team, many of whom are world class operators, to advise, mentor and simply offer an opinion, when needed.”

Leicester Tigers interim head coach Richard Wigglesworth added: “Leigh has been a great source of knowledge and experience, as well as a great mentor and friend to me in my time at the club.”

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“Firstly, while I was balancing playing and coaching and then, when I moved into the Head Coach role, even more so as a brilliant advisor during my first time in a role of this magnitude.

“The work of a General Manager is largely behind the scenes, ensuring that coaches and players are capable of doing the very best they can because of the thankless work that goes into all that is required and Leigh has done that, every day, of which cannot be spoken highly enough of by myself.

“I am so grateful for all that he has done for me, this club and wish him all the very best in whatever comes next, whoever is the lucky organisation to have him.”

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Bull Shark 2 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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