Coleman joins Waratahs in Super Rugby on 3-year deal

SYDNEY (AP) — Darren Coleman is leaving the Major League Rugby-leading L.A. Giltinis to take over as head coach of the New South Wales Waratahs on a three-year contract.

The Sydney-based Waratahs struggled with an inexperienced squad and placed last after 13 consecutive losses in the 2021 Super Rugby season. Rob Penney was fired as head coach in March, leaving assistants Jason Gilmore and Chris Whitaker to guide the team on an interim basis.

The 48-year-old Coleman had coaching stints at three clubs in Sydney’s elite competition before guiding Warringah to the Shute Shield title in 2017. The following season he took over the then-last place Gordon Highlanders and guided the club to the title in 2020.

He had roles as an assistant coach with the Waratahs and Brumies in Super Rugby as well as head coaching positions in Italy and Japan before joining the Giltinis for the MLR club’s first season in Los Angeles.

“I’m passionate about the opportunity to coach the Waratahs. I’m coming home to what I regard as my dream job, one I’ve been preparing for over many years,” Coleman said in a statement. “I also know that this role comes with an enormous responsibility to establish a winning team.

“We have a great deal of work to do to regain our place as the best provincial rugby team in the country."

The Waratahs won their only Super Rugby title in 2014, when the southern hemisphere's premier provincial rugby tournament involved franchises from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

Coleman will leave the Giltinis in August. The club leads the MLR with 11 wins and two losses with three rounds remaining in the regular season.

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