By cardiffsteve
June 15 2015
I suppose it's fair to say the Danny Wilson appointment didn't exactly come out of the blue.
It's also fair to say that by and large it's been met with approval. From the media and from fans. Here's a genuine up and comer, still under 40, being given a chance to build something.
But the rest of the coaching appointments are easily as important.
Defence Coach: John Muggleton, the former Gloucester, Scarletsand Australia defence guru has been linked by the Rugby Paper. Personally I would like to see Phil Blake, formerly of Leicester, get the gig. This is a truly key appointment. Sorting out our colander of a defence could in itself get us a few places higher up the league table.
Backs Coach: This appears to be nailed on. Paul John is apparently staying. Some surprise given that his friend and fellow caretaker Dale Mcintosh has been a dead coach walking for a couple of months. But for a team in 10th, we score a lot of tries. There's reason to believe that John knows what he's doing and Wilson clearly rates him.
Assistant Forwards Coach: Wilson is of course a forwards specialist but may well elect to have an additional forwards coach involved to spread the workload. An obvious candidate might be Gethin Jenkins, who looks likely to move into coaching post retirement and a player/coach role might be an ideal stepping stone. But with world cup commitments, its likely this wont happen just yet. Andi Kyriacou might stay on but with a new broom sweeping through, Wilson may well want another of his own men. Another promising younger coach like Greg Woods of Cross Keys might be an ideal candidate.
The decisions made here could end up making or breaking Wilson's first season. So, no pressure Danny mate.
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