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Crusaders and Canterbury assistant coach Mark Jones has taken a coaching job in England with Worcester.
Crusaders coach Scott Robertson could be in charge of a reduced coaching staff for all of 2021
Former Wales international Mark Jones, who attended Robertson last year and also worked with Canterbury during the 10 Miter Cup, has confirmed that he will not fulfill his 2-year contract with both organizations after choosing to remain in Britain and accept a position. as a senior assistant coach. with the English Prime Minister’s club Worcester Warriors.
Sky sport
The title favorites end too strong for the brave Christchurch Highlanders.
Although the news was only made public on Wednesday, Crusaders CEO Colin Mansbridge said he and Robertson knew before Christmas that Jones and his family would not be returning to Christchurch.
While gaining access to a managed isolation facility and resolving visa issues meant that Jones could not meet with the Crusaders until several weeks after the SRA began on February 26, Mansbridge said he also agreed that he would not re-enter. New Zealand because he wanted to stay close to the wider family in his homeland.
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Jones, 41, had returned to Britain with his wife and 2 children after the 10 Miter Cup.
“We know that Mark has been under quite a bit of stress from being away from his family and home for quite some time, so we have been planning for this for a long period of time,” Mansbridge said. .
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Crusaders assistant coach Mark Jones of Crusaders and his sons pose with the Aotearoa Super Rugby Trophy.
The obvious follow-up question was to ask who would replace Jones.
Mansbridge’s response was to say that the Crusaders were in no rush, and that Robertson had already drawn up plans to split Jones’ defense and position-specific player development portfolios between him and assistants Jason Ryan, Scott Hansen and Andrew Goodman. .
“You wouldn’t do that for a long period of time, but we’ve planned (for this) and Razor has a lot of confidence in the group that’s there and the ability to take on tasks at the start of the season,” Mansbridge said.
“And actually, we could tackle the entire season if necessary.”
Jones told the Worcester Warriors website that it was the “quarantine situation” that turned out to be a major hurdle.
“Once it became clear that he would not be able to return to Canterbury due to the quarantine situation, things happened very quickly with the Warriors,” Jones said.
The Crusaders won’t be alone as they begin the new season with a small group of coaches; the Highlanders and Chiefs have also reduced their numbers, for various reasons, for the 2021 season.
Aaron Mauger and Mark Hammett, who left the Highlanders after last season, are former assistant coaches for the Crusaders, but Mansbridge did not commit when asked about his chances of joining their club.
Former Highlanders head coach Mauger helped Tana Umaga with Moana Pasifika before the Maori All Blacks game in December, and could continue in a similar role if the team were accepted into a remodeled competition in 2022.
Tabai Matson, another former Crusaders employee, was fired by the Chiefs and has extensive experience as a defense coach, but it’s unclear what his plans are for the future.
Not having to pay Jones means the Crusaders would cut their payroll as well.
This would be welcome after Covid-19 caused such chaos during the 2020 season, resulting in a “ modest loss ” (to be revealed this month), but Mansbridge said it was imperative that the club continue to invest in areas of high performers as coaches, doctors and strength and conditioning personnel.
Robertson, in any case, has become used to a high rotation of assistants.
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Assistant coach Mark Jones reacts during a Crusaders Super Rugby training session at Rugby Park.
Leon MacDonald departed after the memorable 2017 title win over the Lions in Johannesburg to return to Tasman, before accepting the job as head coach of the Blues.
Ronan O’Gara, now a coach in France, and Brad Mooar (who trained in Wales before landing an assistant position with the All Blacks) had also worked with Robertson.
Meanwhile, Mansbridge said he was still confident that Robertson would renew his NZ Rugby contract and stay with the Crusaders.
Robertson was expected to re-sign with the club that has rejuvenated since replacing Todd Blackadder in 2017, winning 3 Super Rugby titles and an SRA crown.
Robertson is likely to re-commit until 2023.
