Munster’s interim head coach Ian Costello said the arrival of former Northampton coach Chris Boyd as a performance consultant is a big addition during a period of transition off the field.
The 66-year old New Zealander will arrive in Limerick later this week and help Munster while they are going through the process in the coming months of finding a permanent replacement for Graham Rowntree, but he will not be involved in that process.
Costello, who is preparing the side for the opening game of this season’s Champions Cup against Stade Francais at Thomond Park on Saturday, said Boyd had a lot to offer them.
“Chris is a highly experienced coach, coach developer, and consultant around all elements of performance. He does it with World Rugby, New Zealand, Tonga, and currently with Highlanders as well. And, obviously, we know his association with Northampton.
“So I suppose while we’re going through the process of looking for a coach, we’re always looking for extra layers of support, and that’s Chris’s role. Chris is going to come in and support the coaching team and obviously support all areas of performance outside that.
“He’ll be here on the ground at the back end of this week. He is very much about supporting us and knows that we feel the best way we work would actually be in here and understanding the environment and context.
“There’s a wider search going on around head coach and while we take our time and get that right, we were looking at is there any other solutions that we need in terms of support? And Munster and the IRFU have talked to us about that from the very start. And we’ve had other elements of support, whether it’s IRFU staff or Munster staff.
“So someone like Chris, look, his reputation precedes him, really. I know him from working in England. When I worked at Wasps, he worked at Northampton. We crossed over quite a bit, and I also spent a week at the Hurricanes when he was the head coach, and I know his philosophy around rugby, his knowledge and experience around the coaching craft as well as his character. He’s a really, really good bloke.
“I think he gets who we are and what we’re about and I had a couple of conversations with him in the last week. I think that’s a really, really good fit for that level of support that he’d be able to give us.”
Costello, who has held many roles in Munster over the years, said the manner in which Boyd saw young talent come through in Northampton would be beneficial in helping promising players come through at the province.
“We had 83 caps from our academy last year. Our previous best was 44. We were in the 30s before that. So we’ve seen a really, steady upward curve, around the quality of players and then the opportunity to play them. We have guys with potential, but to turn that into top-quality performance, we need to give the opportunity to play.
“I think Chris has a very clear vision. That’s what I really like about Northampton, he had a really clear vision related to the club and bringing young English players through and providing support for young English coaches as well. So that was something that I think would definitely lean on as well,” added Costello.
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