Good luck Cockerill with Toulon

[Ian Cant]

So far Richard Cockerill as temporary head coach has transformed Toulon so that they could now make The Top 14. From looking rudderless, Toulon,under Cockerill look more of a team capable of winning matches. What a surprise!!!At the business end of the season Cockerill knows what is required.. Good luck Richard. Like here the race to get the final place in the top 4 will go to the wire.

[tigercaspian]

Remember what you did to Harlequins, Ian!!

[ellis9]

It's not surprising that a top class coach is doing so well. Nice one Cockers!

[tigerburnie]

Probably the biggest mistake the board ever made, he should have been promoted upstairs, we need fresh blood in the office. Doubt we will ever get a more of a Tiger than Cockers. I intend to pop down and see him when he comes up here next season.

[Mark62]

Probably the biggest mistake the board ever made, he should have been promoted upstairs, we need fresh blood in the office. Doubt we will ever get a more of a Tiger than Cockers. I intend to pop down and see him when he comes up here next season.

Misguided at best biased at worst. Results and playing style have improved since he left. Promote him to what, he was director of rugby, if anything he needed demoting to head coach or even forwards coach.
I wish him well in Toulon, great gig for him, country he loves sun on his back, and working from the touch line, but the proof of the pudding will be when he moves to Edinburgh with all that involves

[Soggypitch]

Yes Edinburgh are in free fall, lost to Treviso on Saturday.

Will be a tough job, but Cockers to be fair will I'm sure relish it!

[jgriffin]

Probably the biggest mistake the board ever made, he should have been promoted upstairs, we need fresh blood in the office. Doubt we will ever get a more of a Tiger than Cockers. I intend to pop down and see him when he comes up here next season.

Misguided at best biased at worst. Results and playing style have improved since he left. Promote him to what, he was director of rugby, if anything he needed demoting to head coach or even forwards coach.
I wish him well in Toulon, great gig for him, country he loves sun on his back, and working from the touch line, but the proof of the pudding will be when he moves to Edinburgh with all that involves

I won't go into the detail of how 'style' has fluctuated but shall we say I do not agree with the selectivity of this judgement. Mauger was the (forgivable) mistake,along with Hansen IMO; what we needed (with 20/20 hindsight) was an AP experienced attack coach and the current defence coaches promoting. Nevertheless, we will see one way or the other by midway next season.

[drc_007]

As a coach I've always held him in high regard, I don't think his management style is suited to director of rugby. He never gave up the tracksuit and donned the suit.

[ellis9]

It's funny how no one ever questioned Cockerill's DOR role when we were winning trophies. Just because he was the DOR, it doesn't mean he shouldn't have coached as well.

[h's dad]

It's funny how no one ever questioned Cockerill's DOR role when we were winning trophies. Just because he was the DOR, it doesn't mean he shouldn't have coached as well.

Actually ellis, there were those who questioned RC's status when Tigers were winning trophies. Even if some of the proposed alternatives were bizarre.

[ellis9]

I don't recall seeing anyone on here questioning it.

[Mark62]

Whilst trophys were being won, no need for questions.

No issue with Cockers commitment or honesty, the issue imho is that he didn't evolve as the game did, and other teams did, and as a result, Tigers lost a step to the other top teams.

[Scott11]

Good luck Cockers,overstayed your welcome at WR by about two years but thanks for the memories and all the best at Toulon and Edinburgh!

[tigerburnie]

Probably the biggest mistake the board ever made, he should have been promoted upstairs, we need fresh blood in the office. Doubt we will ever get a more of a Tiger than Cockers. I intend to pop down and see him when he comes up here next season.

Misguided at best biased at worst. Results and playing style have improved since he left. Promote him to what, he was director of rugby, if anything he needed demoting to head coach or even forwards coach.
I wish him well in Toulon, great gig for him, country he loves sun on his back, and working from the touch line, but the proof of the pudding will be when he moves to Edinburgh with all that involves

If you'd like to read what I put you will see I said he needed to be in the office, ie helping run the club as a member of the board, there are one or two who have been there since the amateur days and clearly are not keeping up. Apart from Ben Kay we are lacking in the decision making department and Cockers would have been an asset . Aaron was, in hindsight a mistake made by the board and the fact that the same players(barring Mermoz who arrived late)and coaches are turning things round shows that Aarons influence was minimal.

[jgriffin]

It's funny how no one ever questioned Cockerill's DOR role when we were winning trophies. Just because he was the DOR, it doesn't mean he shouldn't have coached as well.

Actually ellis, there were those who questioned RC's status when Tigers were winning trophies. Even if some of the proposed alternatives were bizarre.

You are quite right, for some Cockers could do no right whether as caretaker or DOR and the moaning went on and on.......and now we have the hindsight merchants claiming that RC's sell-by date was <enter random value here>. I've always moaned about recruitment, was wrong about Loffreda, right about Meyer (who has his own revisionist crew), and have said that the crucial decision was to hire Mauger - one that largely came from RC apparently, and was fatal, alas.
I will be interested to see who Cockers tempts to Edinburgh, they are so far up Brown Creek that he will need to strengthen their backbone big-time, and challenge the culture there. I assume that the BoD have locked down BD and AA with contracts quickly......they moved fast with Genge!
I think your points, strawclearer, have some merit.