When Bradley was sent packing last year there were still about 8 matches to play in the Pro 12 - but there seemed to be such an awful fug around the club that there was never any chance of even a dead cat bounce happening. The club lacked leadership on and off the pitch and you just knew the season was going to fizzle out.
And right enough the season unfolded as I expected, they won 3 of those 8 matches - but two of them were against Zebre and the Dragons - the run in also included a defeat at home to Connacht. It appears even the fear of a new coaching regime at the club was not enough to stir some of the players into action, of course it wasn't helped by the quality of some them who had been signed in the last 12 months.
So the search was on for a new head coach - considering the mess made in the previous appointment, I wasn't holding up much hope. In the meantime however Edinburgh were still signing players, sadly they were about the same standard as the previous tranche of players. Aleki Lutui, a 35yr old Tongan journeyman was bizarrely signed - I say bizarrely because not only was he old, NSQ and not especially good there were currently 4 other hookers at the club - it was as if Jack the Ripper was in charge of recruitment for both clubs as Glasgow had 5 hookers on their books, who all at least were qualified to play for Scotland.
The summer progressed and Edinburgh carried on signing players, none of which set the heather on fire and it was all turning into a bit of a mess - July was nearing its end and there was still no announcement. Finally on the 30th of July Alan Solomons was appointed.
Before I start discussing his appointment and 7 months in the job I would like to take a moment to talk about club cultures - I am not talking about the coach imposed ones, but the unwritten ones that survive from coaching regime to coaching regime. Edinburgh used to have one of those, they used to use the wide open spaces of Murrayfield to throw the ball about and play fast open rugby - it didn't bring them any trophies but it sure beat playing dull unsuccessful rugby. The fans enjoyed it and I am sure the players did too, it was certainly a reputation that Edinburgh had right up until 2011 and if you speak to fans of other teams that would be their impression of the side, that and a soft pack. I raise this point as it's important that Edinburgh find this culture again, it needn't be losing rugby - the All Blacks play fast open rugby too, they don't lose many matches - but it had been gone for over two years by the time the SRU had to appoint a successor to the lamentable Bradley. Now was their chance.
If anyone has read a Scottish newspaper sports section in the last 20yrs, they will be familiar with name Stewart Baxter - he was always the name mentioned when a vacancy appeared in the SPL or indeed the national job - he's had more clubs than Sandy Lyle but strangely only ever coached in the UK for a couple of years as the English u19 side. He was Scottish, could stand upright and probably walk and chew gum at the same time and for the SuperSoarawaySun or Daily Ranger this was enough to have your name at least mentioned when the vacancy season arrived. Thankfully rugby vacancies do not appear as often or indeed interest sports hacks much, but there was always one name mentioned when club vacancies appeared and that was Alan Solomons. Solomons is a South African who has coached in the UK with Ulster and Northampton Saints for about 3 years in the early noughties - neither terms were particularly successful - apart from winning the Celtic Cup against guess who, his time at Ulster was probably more notable in their decline from European Champions in 1999. His time at Saints was notable only because he was sacked after about 4 months in the job.
He then slipped off the UK rugby radar - apart from when the occasional vacancy appearing of course - he held one of those vague coaching posts the IRB like to give to coaches nearing the end - hello Frank Hadden and was then appointed Head Coach at South African franchise the Kings, he lasted two years and was then moved upstairs into the Director of Rugby post - his time there was most notable for their relegation from Super 15, quite a feat.
There is a exclamation much beloved by internet users - meh, it's a succinct way of expressing indifference and is used to dismiss something. A look over Mr Solomons CV would have you thinking that - don't get me wrong, by the summer of 2013 there really wasn't much in the way of options out there and certainly not many who would want to coach such a shambles.
A forward thinking CEO might have seen this as a chance, an opportunity to appoint another young Scottish coach (Gregor Townsend had been appointed in 2012 to the Glasgow Head Coach role, with much success) to the role, it was a clean slate and we certainly need more Scottish coaches - like Scottish referees they are not seen often in the pro game. Sadly our CEO is Mark Dodson, a man who's time as SRU CEO has seen us:
- Exit out of the RWC at the group stages for the first time ever.
- See us drop to as low as 12th in the IRB rankings.
- Appoint Scott Johnson.
- Watched the Murrayfield pitch wither and die.
He also appears to have an agenda for Scottish rugby, one that involves as few naturally born Scots as possible in all parts of it, whether it's coaching or playing.
With this agenda in place it was always going to be a foreign coach - which of course isn't a bad thing per se, but how about one who is either up and coming or one with some trophies in his coaching cabinet. Alan Solomans appointment fitted neither - but I think by the time the end of July came along anyone with more than a passing interest wanted someone, anyone in place for the start of the season.
Solomons signings have made my blood pressure rise continually since the season started - mostly on account on the majority of them being crap - but he appears completely unabashed about the signing policy. He's surrounded himself with South African journeymen - birds of a feather - and when given the chance to pick a Saffer ahead of a Scot, guess who gets the nod.
His treatment of Geoff Cross and Alasdair Dickinson has been scandalous - Cross and Dickenson are Scottish squad players and his bosses should have been reminding him of this - especially when the alternative are two saffer fatties that are no better and epitomise meh. Clearly he has had a problem with Cross who has now left the club and yes sometimes these things happen, however Solomons needs to look at the bigger picture - much as he might not like it Edinburgh play a vital role on supplying players to the Scotland team and someone who couldn't spot a prop if one sat on his knee and nibbled his ear should not be messing this up.
Normally when these sort of questions are raised the coach can point to results and smugly refute the accusations - not much chance of that Mr Solomons.
So, apart from playing like a drain most of the season, filling the squad with every fellow Saffer he could get his hands on and when one slips his grasp he grabs a Kiwi or Aussie and imposing another moronic kick and no chase tactical structure on the team - what has Mr Solomons ever done for us?
We are seven months into his reign and once again we have a coach who has failed to impose any coherent gameplan and filled the team with NSQ journeymen. In the words of John Fogerty it's fricking Deja Vu All Over Again - I added the fricking, but I am sure John would approve if he had the misfortune to follow Edinburgh.
I am sure there are some happy clappy fans who in any other time would be following the Rev Moon who will argue that he must be given more time and things are getting better. Just how fricking bad were they if Edinburgh's current position is viewed as an improvement?
I am not suggesting Solomons should be sacked - he should never have been appointed - but something has to change - to be called Edinbokke might be all right if we were actually winning some matches and marching up the league, but it's the odd win surrounded by utter utter dross.
One of the justifications for signings all the NSQ players is they strengthen the squad during the Autumn internationals and Six Nations - would you like to know how many games we have won during these periods? ONE - against fricking Zebre.
None of this adds up, the club are going nowhere - adrift on a ship led by a saffer with the personality of stale piece of bread. The squad has never had fewer Scottish qualified players and we no longer play like Edinburgh. Four fricking years of kick and bloody chase - it's quite frankly rubbish and I have absolutely no idea why people buy season tickets.
Like Scotland, changes need to happen and the common denominator in all of this is Mark Dodson - if his jacket was on a shoogly nail last summer it's long been trampled on by a long line of mucky boots - he's such a poor CEO he makes me pine for the days of McKie's tenure.
Think about that for a second folks.
No comments:
Post a Comment