'We would prefer he's around but that's not the way it is'

Hurricanes coach Jason Holland has revealed a rejig of roles within the team’s staff was in order following the departure of assistant coach Carlos Spencer.

Spencer, who joined the Hurricanes staff at the start of 2019, revealed he was told he would be made redundant at the conclusion of the Super Rugby Aotearoa season “due to the financial uncertainty created by Covid-19” and decided to walk early.

“Rather than carry on and finish off the competition I saw this as an opportunity to spend some well needed time with the family and sort out what our next move is,” he told NZME.

A showcase of the Western Force’s latest recruits ahead of Super Rugby AU’s kick-off.

A showcase of the Western Force’s latest recruits ahead of Super Rugby AU’s kick-off.

“[I’m] In no hurry to make any decisions, just want to enjoy time with the family and finally get to watch my kids play some sport.”

Holland admitted the situation was far from ideal and he would consequently be having to re-shuffle responsibilities within the team.

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“We’ll re-jig a few things, I might get a bit more involved in the hands-on stuff with the rugby and some of the stuff above me gets taken care of so it’s going to take a little bit of working through,” Holland said.

“We’re gutted to see Carlos go, he was a top man and a top coach and it’s not the most ideal situation. But like a lot of places around New Zealand at the moment with Covid, it’s a necessity.

“We would prefer he’s around but that’s not the way it is.”

The Hurricanes remain winless through the opening three weeks of Super Rugby Aotearoa after holding a 4-2 record in Super Rugby pre-lockdown.

They face the Chiefs this weekend following a bye after being defeated 39-25 by the Crusaders at home.

Holland said the extended break has given them plenty of opportunities to work on their game.

“When you lose a game that you felt you were average at, you don’t want a bye the next week, you want to get back into it and put it right,” Holland said. “But from another side, we had a couple of days off last week and then got some really good work done at the back end of last week around those things we thought we were average against the Crusaders so it’s been good for us, chomping at the bit now.

“We lost at little parts of our game that we’re not getting right which the Crusaders capitalised on so it’s all within our control, that’s the main thing, it’s all little things we know we can be better at. A lot of it’s around retention of the ball, getting rid of some of the errors, how we apply pressure and don’t put it on ourselves.”