Interest in the Bay of Plenty Steamers' head coaching role has reached global proportions after applications were received from as far afield as South Africa and Europe.
The deadline for applications was late last week, and the Bay of Plenty Rugby Union have confirmed they received more than 20.
Bay of Plenty Steamers' No.8 Carl Axtens offloads against Northland at ASB Baypark in this year's ITM Cup. Photos: Tracy Hardy.
The interest comes after coach Kevin Schuler announced he stepping down from the role last month, signalling an end to three ITM Cup seasons where wins were few and far between.
'We had more applications this time than we had when we last advertised 2011,” says chief executive Mike Rogers, 'so we are pretty comfortable with the number of applications and there is a pretty high standard.”
Without going into specifics, Rogers says there has been widespread interest in the position from New Zealand grassroots right through to international attention.
'We have received applications from places like Australia, South Africa and over in Europe,” he adds.
'There is all sorts. We have got applicants that have lots of different levels of experience; representative, clubs and school.”
And many might see the interest as a welcome boost considering Schuler's tough track record while in charge.
Appointed head coach in 2011, the former All Blacks flanker faced some tough challenges at the helm, winning just three matches in 2012, one in 2013 and subsequent relegation to the championship division, before registering just two victories this season.
Back in 2011 the rugby union passed up on hiring former All Blacks loose forwards Scott Robertson, who went on to be involved in Canterbury's six-year ITM Cup dominance before coaching this season.
Rogers pays tribute to the time and effort Schuler has given, which spans a decade since he was technical adviser for the Ranfurly Shield 2004 team.
'Obviously the last couple of years none of us are confident with the results on the field,” he adds, 'but he's also played a significant role in developing talent and that's part of how we measure success.
'Obviously we want to win and we want strong performance, but equally for us it's about developing talent.”
The list of 20 applicants will be whittled down to four or five before a decision is made later this month.
4 comments
A good stepping stone,
Posted on 05-11-2014 14:00 | By Jimmy Ehu
for an aspiring coach, the team can only go one way, I just wish the support staff wage bill could be halved, so as in the way of professional sport, we could purchase a few players, and yes I know B.O.P rugby have done a great job balancing the books, but revenue comes from spectators, and beside die hard fans most supporters do not like losers!!!!.
misleading headline
Posted on 05-11-2014 21:48 | By Captain Sensible
Misleading headline as there is not a global interest in rugby so very unlikely that 99% of planet earth even know there is a team with such a name. Only a handful of the 200 nations care for rugby.
not global
Posted on 06-11-2014 10:42 | By Captain Sensible
There is no global interest in rugby. Never has been and never will be.
very global
Posted on 08-11-2014 07:08 | By southmark
'We have received applications from places like Australia, South Africa and over in Europe,” I think we can safely accept that there is interest from around the globe in this role.
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to make a comment.