Heyneke Meyer steps down as Stade Francais coach

Top 14 outfit Stade Francais have announced that their head coach, Heyneke Meyer, has resigned from his position with immediate effect.

The former Springboks mentor has been in charge of the Paris-based club since 2018 on a two-year contract but they are rooted to the bottom of the standings with two victories from nine games this season.

“It has always been my intention to do what is best for this great club… and with this in mind I hereby offer my resignation as coach of Stade Francais,” Meyer said in a statement on the club website.

“It has been an honour to coach the club and I have loved my time in Paris. I will always remain a supporter of Stade Francais and wish the club success for the future.”

Meyer’s last match in charge of Stade was on Sunday when they suffered a 25-9 defeat to Racing 92 in their Parisian derby.

Stade’s next match is at home against Brive in the Challenge Cup on Friday.

According to a Midi Olympique report, former Stade Francais players Julien Arias and Laurent Sempere will take over the coaching reins on a temporary basis.

Meyer’s assistants at Stade, Pieter de Villiers, Dewald Senekal, John McFarland and Ricardo Loubscher are also expected to leave the club.

Meyer guided South Africa at the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England where they lost to eventual tournament winners New Zealand in the semi-finals.

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