Why Quins must look outside the club for Kingston's replacement – Andy Goode
It’s a real shame to see John Kingston leave Harlequins after 17 years at the club but they need a strong outside influence at the top to turn their fortunes around.
Kingston has carried the can and it’s hard to argue with that after six defeats in their last seven Premiership games and an awful season but it isn’t just him who has been at fault and big changes are needed if they’re to be competitive next season.
We’re in a results-driven business and there is pressure on the man at the top to produce the results. Champions Cup qualification is a huge carrot as well now and directors of rugby know the consequences if they don’t get enough points on the board.
They did scrape into the Champions Cup places last season and the statement from the club yesterday pointed out that it was their highest league finish for three years but they should be aiming higher than that and they’ve actually fallen backwards.
Kingston said in his statement that “this is the strongest squad ever assembled in all my time at Harlequins” and you can understand why he’s saying that but it simply isn’t the case. They won the Premiership six years ago with a group of players that were all at the top of their game.
And, if he does genuinely believe that, then the coaching underneath him would have to be questioned. Nick Easter and Nick Evans are learning and have the potential to be top class coaches but being a top player doesn’t automatically mean you’ll become a top coach.
There’s only really Graham Rowntree among the coaching staff who is an outside voice as the other coaches are all embedded within the Quins system. Mark Mapletoft has been there since 2010 as well, so are his ideas going a bit stale? Or, is the environment just way too comfortable for the players?
Kingston, along with Mapletoft and Rowntree, signed a new contract in January and, whatever the details are of that, he’s going to get a sizeable pay-off so you do have to question the board in terms of why those contracts were renewed at that point.
It’s not as if they were flying high just after Christmas. They were in ninth place in the table back then as well. They’ve never even been a contender in terms of the top four this season after losing to London Irish on day one.
There is a massive question mark over the strength of this Harlequins squad and particularly the depth that they have when their frontline players are away. The quality of the Premiership now means you can’t just rely on all of your players coming through the academy system.
You have to look at what other clubs are doing and, although they’ve been out injured a lot as well, their major signings of Renaldo Bothma, Francis Saili and Demetri Catrakilis don’t measure up.
There are some real positives at Quins and you don’t want to throw the baby out with the bathwater but they need a strong figure at the helm to take the club forward because they’ve unquestionably underachieved and gone backwards since they won the title in 2012.
They need a strong personality and leader now who can continue to develop the good aspects that the club is renowned for but also address the areas where they’ve been found out this year.
They’ve moved to make this decision more quickly than they might have done before because they know Bristol are coming up with a really competitive squad and if they perform at this level next season, they’ll definitely be looking over their shoulders and they could be staring relegation in the face if things get any worse.
I think they must have had this in their thoughts for a few weeks in terms of planning for next season because it sounds like they’ve already started looking into replacements.
The search is on for a big name but I don’t know how many suitable people are out there looking for work. The link they now have with the NZRU will lead people to look over there. Wayne Smith would obviously be a major coup but he’s working in Japan and has said he doesn’t want a full-time role.
Jim Mallinder could reinvent himself there but there’s unlikely to be a real clamour from outside for him to be the man. Stuart Lancaster is doing a great job at Leinster but I’m not sure he’s the right man for the top job. Richard Cockerill would be perfect for them but he’s at Edinburgh.
Everyone would love to see Martin Johnson back in the game and a director of rugby position rather than head coach might suit him but I don’t think he needs it in his life. He’s got a number of roles that keep him busy but you never know. They’d be silly not to at least try to speak to him.
Nick Kennedy looks like he could have a great future in coaching but I think he’s too inexperienced. Jake White’s name comes up whenever a job is available and then there is someone like Robbie Deans who might be open to it but I’m scratching my head really.
It’s never nice to see anyone lose their job at all but we are in a results business and sentimentality doesn’t win you trophies. It’s really sad to see him go after 17 years at the club but you do have to be ruthless if you want to be successful.
Chief executive David Ellis has talked about winning titles but they’re a million miles away from that at the moment. As much as it’s a passion and we all love the game, rugby is an out-and-out business now. Action had to be taken but the next decision over who to hire in his stead won’t be any easier.
Comments on RugbyPass
One that will start to come up from now on is penalties for back pushes during kick chase scrambles. Very difficult to detect. In Croke Park if you replay the Hendy NH try, you will see Furbank push Porter in the back, who collides with Larmour knocking the ball across into Hendy’s path to dot down. A more significant example was in the RWC QTR final where Arendse pushes Fickou into two other French players for the ball to spill into Arendse’s path for him to gather and run in to score SAs first try. Not cheating if you are not caught and very difficult to spot but with kicking becoming so critical I feel its an area that will referreeed/TMO-ed more.
3 Go to commentsWhat a pathetic little twit Andy Goode is, as if we care what he thinks…..😂
109 Go to commentsFoxy has been a wonderful player for the Scarlets and Wales.
1 Go to commentsNika the Georgian is the best referee in the world at the moment. Luckily we will be spared the shite SH refs and Barnes will hopefully remain retired given how shite and embarrassing he was at the RWC.
3 Go to commentsThis is the most exciting game of the summer imo, as we really won’t know in advance how both teams are going to play. - Will Robertson just reproduce his Crusaders tactics from last year, or will there be a conscious effort to borrow from the Hurricanes and Blues, and from the aspects of the ABs world cup strategy that worked well? - England under Borthwick have put in some good performances playing attacking rugby, and some good performances playing kick-oriented defensive rugby. Will Borthwick try to merge them together into a single all-court game, or will he continue switching between different approaches depending on the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition?
1 Go to commentsI’m predicting an aggregate points difference of no more than +/-10pts across both matches this series.
1 Go to commentsI’m predicting an aggregate points difference of no more than +/-10pts across both matches this series.
9 Go to commentsFinals are always tense affairs for the players so I do not expect this to be a spectacle of running rugby unfortunately.
3 Go to commentsBulls***': Ex-England international calls out Eben Etzebeth… Not to his face but from very far away… after he’d left. Checked to make sure he wasn’t in the building.
109 Go to commentsHopefully this will mean a new Auckland league team to support in the west. Big Warriors fan but it’s very, very stale on that front and I’d like the option of another team if it was to watch league again. League needs to step up BIG time if its to get anywhere, another AK team and something from the capitol or south is a must for the game.
3 Go to commentsGood, deep interview, nice job Frankie!
1 Go to commentsNRL players don’t have anywhere near the number of Tests. Some people would be happy having Rest Homes full if 40 yo ex-players walking, or hobbling more like it, into walls. It’s just a game!
4 Go to commentsNOW Razor is worried about ABs getting injured or overplayed! Didn’t bother him last year. He happily played his AB Crusaders.
4 Go to commentsWhat is the World Rugby U20 players born year.
2 Go to commentsMuch like the Chiefs finally gave up waiting for Atu Moli to ever not be injured, you have to wonder if the Chiefs and Crusaders will let Josh Lord and Ethan Blackadder go next season. They’re being well paid to sit in the injury ward every year. Better off putting those funds towards someone who might actually play.
7 Go to commentsShowed better basic skills than some nz Super sides, who probably would have botched some of those backline moves. This tournament really is too short though. Needs more teams, or have them play two rounds to properly prepare them for the near full-time NH U20 sides.
4 Go to commentsGood grief it’s only six months. Probably just upset it’s not an established kiwi entering their prime they can “project” into green to join the rest.
3 Go to commentsGood player but far from being best in the world. That's an exaggeration. Perhaps Best in world by Northern Hemisphere standards and biasis but certainly not Southern Hemi standards
3 Go to commentsWell one thing about World Cup knock out rounds and Ireland is very clear: they won’t be getting ahead of themselves in ‘27! Because making it beyond the QF is well and truly ‘IN THEIR HEADS’ now…😉
109 Go to commentsHas this guy been dope tested? Sounds like a case of “roid rage”.
1 Go to comments