Sporting fans from across Australia have paid Reds maestro Ewen McKenzie the ultimate honour by selecting him as the nation’s best coach for 2011.
Rugby365
The accolade was announced on Saturday, with McKenzie winning the Coach Performer of the Year Award for his efforts in guiding the Reds to their maiden Super Rugby title in the professional era.
Sports fanatics from across Australia were asked to vote online for the award with McKenzie toppling stiff competition from elite coaches across all of the country’s leading sporting codes.
McKenzie joined the Reds in 2010 and in his first season at the helm took the side to fifth place before masterminding their historic Super Rugby triumph in 2011, capping off a memorable regular season of 13 wins and just three losses by overcoming the Crusaders in the Super Rugby Final at a sold-out Suncorp Stadium.
The Reds were recognised for their achievement through winning the Queensland Sports Team of the Year Award last month.
“To be recognised in a nationwide vote is extremely humbling,” McKenzie said.
“Clearly 2011 was an exceptional year for Queensland Rugby and the Reds,” he added.
“People are proud to call themselves Reds fans again and, importantly, rugby has returned to a position of strength, not just in Queensland but across Australia. Winning the 2011 Super Rugby title is an achievement I’ll always enjoy but in our pursuit of greatness, hopefully it’s just the beginning of what the Reds can achieve together.”
Queensland Rugby CEO Jim Carmichael congratulated McKenzie for being recognised as Australia’s best coach.
“This award is deserved recognition of Ewen’s commitment and dedication to getting the very best out of the young team we have here at the Reds,” Carmichael said.
“Our playing group rises to each challenge they are set by Ewen and in 2012 the bar will be raised even higher in the pursuit of excellence.”
Sounds like the ideal candidate for the SA job
1 @ Lion4ever:
Ah, yes…. but are the SARU okes prepared to sign a foreigner and / or are they prepared to think outside the box?
Another thing, I do not think our players are, let’s call it mature enough, or awake enough to play like the Aussies… to play what’s in front of you?
Too little time is spent on our youth and junior ranks with respect to ball handling skills, honing individual flair, running into space. Will McKenzie therefore make a good South African Springbok coach?
Its taken John Mitchell a year and half to get the Lions to play whats in front of them. To get our guys to play like that, it means jettisoning the bulk of the players who played for De Villiers, and use some hungry youngsters, who are willing to learn.
3 @ Lion4ever:
Before we take for granted that John Mitchell WILL be successful (only achieved a Currie Cup so far), or that his style of play will be fully successful, I think we need to see how the Lions fare through a Super Rugby Season, don’t you think so too?
Only once we know that much, will I be convinced that a foreigner with a ‘foreign game style or strategy’ in South African terms, like McKenzie, could MAYBE do the job for SA.
See, if it implodes and does not work, the Springboks will be going even more backwards, than is currently the situation.
In the meantime, a Bok coach has to be appointed, according to things / styles / strategies and facts the South African players do know, according to strenghts we DO have and who’s willing to change things to suit that… with a bit of a change in the eventual mind towards a more exciting brand of rugby.
I personally think we need a South African head coach who knows and understands our strenghts, but who also has the balls to appoint a backline as well as defensive coach who leans towards the Aussie or New Zealand backline approaches, to gradually change up a gear or two.
I also think we need a forward coach who places more importance on breakdown dominance, and who together with the more exciting backline coaches can work out a unique South African strategy to be way more effective at the 168 or so breakdowns per game, in order to hog possession more effectively and work effectively from there.
In other words, I’m sort of advocating a hybrid scenario… bit of the old strenghts, bring in a bit of the new. Our traditional strenghts are there, not to be summarily discarded.
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