Marco Bortolami lands new Test role just 19 days after Sale axing

Georgia has found their next head coach, as Pierre-Henry Broncan will take over the Lelos after Richard Cockerill’s dismissal in December. The 51-year-old coach is expected to sign a two-year deal, which will see the Frenchman lead the Lelos at the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

Georgia under Cockerill failed to overtake Japan in the World Rugby rankings, and the Georgia Rugby Union felt the team had not progressed enough since the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

After playing for more than 15 years, former scrum-half Broncan took his first steps as a coach with Blagnac in 2006, managing a handful of Pro D2 sides before signing with Stade Toulousain as the senior team’s defence coach, a role he held from 2015 to 2018. He replaced Mauricio Reggiardo at Castres in 2020 and remained in the role for three years, stepping down before accepting a short-term deal with Eddie Jones’ Wallabies.

Nonetheless, he did not waste time and accepted CA Brive’s offer to take over the club after their Pro D2 demotion, but has been unable to guide the historic French team back to the Top 14.

However, Broncan is only expected to arrive after the Pro D2 conclusion, as he is still under contract with CA Brive for the next five months. Former Sale Sharks head coach Marco Bortolami will act as Georgia’s head coach until June, but will stay with the current Men’s Rugby Europe Championship title holders as Broncan’s forward coach.

RugbyPass exclusively revealed Bortolami’s early exit from Sale back in December, a move that was confirmed four days later by the club.

RugbyPass understands that Pierre-Henry Broncan’s stay with Georgia can be extended for a further two years if the Lelos impress at the upcoming World Cup. He will be the second French coach to have managed Georgia, following Claude Saurel, who coached between 1997 and 2003.

Georgia will face a serious title challenge from Spain in this year’s Men’s Rugby Europe Championship, with the Lelos campaign due to start on February 8.