O'Sullivan: Throws in the towel
Eddie O'Sullivan ended his ties to the United States for a second time when he decided not to reapply for the coaching job on Wednesday.
After resigning as Ireland coach in 2008, O'Sullivan took over the Eagles in 2009 and qualified them for the recent World Cup in New Zealand.
There they beat Russia for their first World Cup win in eight years. They were also competitive against Ireland and Italy but lost heavily to eventual third-placed Australia.
"The Eagles' performance at the Rugby World Cup speaks volumes about him and the way he prepared the team," USA Rugby CEO Nigel Melville said.
O'Sullivan was the Eagles assistant coach at the 1999 World Cup then led Ireland at the next two tournaments.
Comments
milesman1 says...
I think the only way that will happen is if the coach is American. Still not sure we have that type of coach, experience wise, available.
The best 'headline' coaches I see out there right now are Nick Mallett, John Kirwan (not sure if he resigned with Japan or not), and Eddie Jones.
I think Mallett would be fantastic, especially for our Forward play, but if his reason for pulling out of consideration for the ENG job is to be believed (doubtful), he would prefer to be in SA. Shame, as his outward passion for the game and physical presence, as odd as it sounds, would have a greater pull on Amercians than what O'Sullivan's presented.
Posted 11:51 18th November 2011
5Lock4ward says...
The Eagles need a coach who wants to be there, not somebody who is using the position as a stepping stone to somewhere else.
Posted 20:24 16th November 2011