Leicester last night sacked their head coach, Marcelo Loffreda, seven months after the Argentinian took charge at Welford Road. Despite guiding the Tigers to two finals, the club's board felt he was not the man to take them forward and terminated his contract two years early, less than a week after the loss of the Premiership title to Wasps.
Speculation about Loffreda's future has been rife for months and he returned to Argentina after the play-off final defeat by Wasps for a five-day holiday saying that he wanted to carry on but that he knew his future was in the hands of others. When his chief supporter on the board, the club's chief executive Peter Wheeler, became less emphatic in his backing last week, Loffreda knew he was heading for the exit.
Leicester issued a statement yesterday through their chairman, Peter Tom, who expressed his sadness at having to make what the club felt was a necessary decision. He added that the Tigers were looking at the coaching set-up, with several people on the board feeling that a director of rugby is needed. It is understood that the former South Africa coach, Jake White, has already been sounded out.
"No decision has been taken on a new appointment but we expect the new rugby structure to be in place by the time the players return for pre-season training [next month]," said Tom. "Our decision has been taken with a degree of sadness but it was taken in the best interests of the club. We felt it had to be done now to allow everyone to prepare fully to meet the challenges of the new season."
Tom and his fellow directors need to convince Leicester supporters that they are the people to take the club forward. They appointed Loffreda and were the subject of a number of critical comments posted on local websites after the play-off final defeat by Wasps, which followed a tame capitulation to the Ospreys in the EDF Energy Cup final the previous month. "They have messed up and should go," wrote one season-ticket holder. "There is a lot of disillusionment and it is no good trying to pin it all on Loffreda."
Leicester won the EDF and the Premiership last season to end three barren years but under Loffreda they were consistent only in their inconsistency and their conservative style of play contrasted starkly with the higher tempo game played not just by Gloucester, Bath and Wasps but by Harlequins and London Irish.
Leicester appeared caught between old and new, losing their ability to grind down opponents without being able to sharpen their cutting edge behind, where the likes of Aaron Mauger and Tom Varndell spent too much time on the periphery.
Loffreda argued that having joined Leicester at the end of October, after guiding Argentina to third place in the World Cup, he needed a full pre-season with the players to give his ideas the best chance of succeeding. The board felt the players related better to two coaches who had played for Leicester, Richard Cockerill and Neil Back.
The question for the board this month is whether to supplement the pair with a backs coach - probably another former Tiger, Austin Healey - and make Cockerill head coach, or whether to go again outside the club for a director of rugby. It was reported in South Africa last month that White had been approached but he hankers for a return to international rugby and some at the club believe that familiarity would breed content.
