Aviva Premiership Rugby Football Union club the London Irish have confirmed that Director of Rugby Brian Smith will leave the club with immediate effect and not wait till the end of the season.
Smith, a former attack coach for the England national team, was named as the coach of the side following the fallout from the sensational dumping of Martin Johnson’s England at the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand four years ago and he was expected to hold on to the reins of the club till the summer when he was due to return to his native in Australia.
However, the club has now decided that it needs to make plans ahead of the new season and has asked Smith to vacate his desk immediately. Bob Casey, a former skipper who played at lock for the London Irish almost a decade back under Smith has been put in caretaker charge at the club and he has also been put in charge of working behind the scene to identify a replacement for the departing head coach.
The 36 year old Casey retired from playing in 2012 after almost a decade at the club during which time; he was capped seven times by the Ireland national team.
Declan Kidney; the former coach of the Ireland team has been put in as the bookies’ favourite to take over the job and so is Tom Coventry, who is assistant coach at the New Zealand Super Rugby side the Chiefs.
The London Irish have been taken over by new owners and they want the team to be delivering o the field and are willing to make the necessary changes to ensure that it happens.
The Exiles have been very poor these last few seasons after some dominating displays at home nearly a decade back.