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Mark McCall joins key lieutenants in signing new Saracens deal

NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 12: Saracens Director of Rugby Mark McCall arrives prior to the Gallagher Premiership Rugby match between Newcastle Falcons and Saracens at Kingston Park on November 12, 2023 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Mark McCall, the second-longest-serving Director of Rugby in the Gallagher Premiership behind Exeter’s Rob Baxter, has committed his future to Saracens by signing a new contract.

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The Northern Irishman will continue to be supported by head coach Joe Shaw, senior coach Dan Vickers, forwards coach Ian Peel, defence coach Adam Powell and assistant coach Rob Webber, who have also penned new deals.

The new contracts ensure that the coaching group, which has delivered five Premiership titles, three European Cups and one RFU Championship title during their time with the club, largely remains intact.

Kevin Sorrell will be one notable absentee next season after the backs coach announced in May that his 30-year association with the club was to end, while performance director Phil Morrow is now with England.

McCall, who has been at the helm since 2011, is looking forward to the challenge of restoring Saracens to the top of the European game after they missed out on the play-offs last season.

“I am grateful and excited for the opportunity to continue our work with a hungry, motivated group of players and high-calibre staff who care deeply about the players they support.
We believe that the group has the talent and the drive to develop into a special team. I would like to thank the board for their continued support and trust.”

McCall has been recognised as the Premiership Rugby Director of Rugby of the Season multiple times, including in 2012/13, 2013/14, 2015/16, 2018/19 and 2022/23, and has a remarkable 72% win percentage from 307 Premiership games in charge.

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J
JW 3 hours ago
New report details source of Ardie Savea's All Blacks frustrations

Yeah it’s hard to be critical of Razor but of choices in his first year of the loosies he constantly played Ardie at 8. It would seem that was always the plan and that Hoskins was surplas to requirements (7, with Dalton then Cane, as was fairly happy with but understand the calls to drop Cane for his last test, along with TJ, and 6 was shared around nicely I thought) and he didn’t have the alround game of Ardie to simply overtake him at 8 (and use Ardie elsewhere). Of course he did that exact thing next year, too late for HS. Then last year 7 was fine if though the same problem was brought about by using Ardie (always leaves a component of a back three missing) there so often stopping Dalton from getting opportunities. At 6 Parker just had one or two too many games for me but 8 was shuffled around nicely, even if I don’t know why Lakai was thought to be the key there.

Of course a lot of rotation was brought about by, you guesed it, injury, still. Now to be fair to Razor, in reality we have no idea if he had to manage Ardie this way, based on NZRs desires with his contract (we have seen them move heaven and earth to retain him), and if he benched him often whether that would have caused him to leave or not. Or even that Hoskins would have accepted a jersey unless it was with a single digit on it, and a regular pick, as he had had to work his way back to the team without a big bump in his contract (of loosing AB selection early on) of other people his standing, so he also might have still put his family and therefor more over the jersey.



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