Clive Woodward's resignation: England's World Cup-winning rugby squad will be selected and coached by Andy Robinson for their three forthcoming autumn internationals at Twickenham after Clive Woodward formally quit his job at the Rugby Football Union last night with immediate effect.
The 40-year-old Robinson accepted the role of acting head coach after the RFU rejected Woodward's offer to remain until Christmas and bade an instant farewell to the man who masterminded their World Cup triumph little more than nine months ago.
Robinson, who made his name as a player and coach at Bath, has already intimated he would like the job as Woodward's long-term replacement until the next World Cup in 2007 with the RFU confirming it intends to "start our search" within the existing coaching set-up. "Andy is clearly a strong candidate . . . and he can apply for the job," said the RFU's chief executive Francis Baron. "He has informed me that he will do so."
As both players and coaches have discovered this week, however, circumstances can change swiftly in rugby union and Robinson could yet find himself an unenviable hostage to results, assuming the RFU delays naming Woodward's permanent successor until after England's games against Canada, South Africa and Australia in November.
By then Woodward's proposed new career in soccer should be up and running and some of the disbelief around English rugby may have subsided. Baron confessed he was "personally disappointed" that Woodward had not stuck to the contract he signed last year and declined to hang around for another World Cup.
Woodward is still due to coach the Lions in New Zealand next summer and he has assured the Lions committee that he will not be taking up a full-time position in football until after the end of next year. He is expected to take up a role with Southampton later this month on a part-time consultancy basis.
Confirmation of the coach's departure finally came at around 6.30 p.m. after another day of legal discussions at Twickenham aimed at agreeing an acceptable exit strategy. Woodward was due to work a 12-month notice period and it is understood he was holding out for his £250,000 salary, not least because the World Cup success that he inspired had helped the RFU boost its turnover by 20 per cent. Woodward did not attend yesterday's meeting in person but issued a statement confirming Baron had accepted his resignation. "I informed Francis yesterday that I was happy to stay for the Test matches in the autumn but in discussion with him it was agreed it would make for a smoother transition of coaching and management responsibility if I withdrew from the head coach position with immediate effect," said Woodward, offering Robinson his "full support".
Baron paid tribute to the "outstanding job" Woodward has done since taking over from Jack Rowell in 1997 while Robinson insisted he had done his best to dissuade his colleague from leaving. "I made it very clear to the RFU and Clive that my wish was for him stay on as head coach," said Robinson. "However, I have now been offered an opportunity, which I have accepted."
Robinson's unswerving devotion and relentless work ethic have long been appreciated by Woodward but the RFU must now decide if he has the breadth of vision that set Woodward apart. Gloucester's director of rugby Nigel Melville has formally joined Rob Andrew in declining to enter the race but the former Springbok coach Nick Mallett is a possible dark horse.
