The Cell C Sharks have been forward thinking with their announcement that current Blitzbok coach Neil Powell will be taking up the position of Director of Rugby at the Durban franchise when he takes up his contract at the beginning of September ahead of the 2022/23 season.
        
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Powell, who will complete his commitments to the national Sevens team at this year's Rugby World Cup to be played in Cape Town, was initially appointed to be the Sharks' defence coach. But former Springbok No8 and successful Emirates Lions captain Warren Whiteley has done well in that role in the interim.Â
With the South Africa’s top franchises moving into a challenging new environment where they will have teams competing in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship and the Carling Currie Cup at the same time, there is now an obvious need to have someone charged with the responsibility of ensuring and overseeing the alignment of culture as well as coaching and playing strategies.
TAILOR-MADE FOR THE ROLE
After his long and successful stint as the Blitzbok’s head coach, Powell looks tailor-made for the role. Sean Everitt will continue as head coach of the Cell C Sharks URC team, with Etienne Fynn doing likewise with the Currie Cup team, and Sharks CEO Dr Eduard Coetzee has denied that the creation of the role of director of rugby is in any way a demotion for Everitt.
Importantly, the hiring and firing of the coaches won’t be in Powell’s ambit of responsibilities like it is in some director of rugby definitions and he will be employing a consultative style in his dealings with the coaches.
“We’ve created the position of director of rugby to make Sean’s job easier and this appointment is the culmination of a consultative process with Sean that has been going on for some time,” said Coetzee when contacted by supersport.com.
“The URC coach cannot be responsible for coaching the team in that competition and also overseeing the alignment of culture and playing template across all levels of our structures. Sean is a good coach and this appointment will free him up to focus more on his role of ensuring that we are successful in the URC and put ourselves in a position to reach our ultimate goal of doing well in the European Champions Cup.”
CHAMPIONS CUP QUALIFICATION WILL MAKE DIRECTOR MORE NECESSARY
The Sharks’ bonus point win over the Vodacom Bulls in Pretoria on Saturday, thus breaking a long drought for the Durbanites at that venue at franchise level that stretched back to 2011, has made the attainment of a place in next year’s Champions Cup more of a reality.
The Sharks are currently ninth and, with an extended run of home matches to come after their visit to Italy to play Benetton a fortnight from now, they are within touching distance of getting themselves into a position where qualifying for the Champions Cup won’t depend on them winning the South African Shield. The four Shield (pool) winners automatically qualify and then the four next best teams, so a top eight position should guarantee qualification.
If the Sharks are part of the Champions Cup next year it will mean more time on the road for the senior team and make it even less viable for Everitt to be overseeing the alignment of the URC, Currie Cup and age-group teams. The Bulls already have a director of rugby in Jake White, who also doubles up as head coach of the URC team, but it may only be a matter of time before all the SA URC franchises see the need for a director of rugby based on the Sharks model.
Commenting on the appointment in a press release issued by the Sharks early on Monday, Coetzee spoke about Powell’s qualities.
“Neil is an unbelievable human being and what he has developed and achieved with the Blitzboks has been phenomenal. He has inculcated a strong work ethic and a sound culture at the Blitzboks where accountability and respect is at the fore,” said Coetzee.
“As Director of Rugby at The Sharks, Neil will oversee our entire on-field rugby programme and will support the various coaching teams within our set-up. He will be responsible for driving on-field high performance, team culture, standards and will ensure that there is a thorough process and a blueprint developed to achieve sustainable success at the highest level.
“Sean remains as head coach of the senior team and Sean will benefit from Neil’s experience, guidance and support as well as the operational structures that Neil will implement to ensure an optimal high performance working environment, which in turn drives performance on the field.”
POWELL EXCITED ABOUT NEW CHALLENGE
Having built a tight-knit squad at the Sevens, creating a well-oiled machine that has enjoyed great success on the international circuit, it is envisaged that Powell will add his unique style, vast knowledge and extensive experience of driving a culture of accountability to what is already in place at the Sharks.
“After a nine-year stint with the Blitzboks this is a new challenge for my personal development and an exciting opportunity that has been presented to me that I gladly accept with great honour,” said Powell.
“The Sharks is an unbelievable brand and I’m looking forward to working with the likes of Ed and Sean, who already have a strong vision of where they want to go in the future and if I can contribute in any way to achieving that vision that would be great.
“I am looking forward to the challenge and how I can positively contribute to making this franchise hugely successful not just in South Africa, but globally as well. This will be a collective effort by every person involved in the set-up,” he concluded.