Thank you Mr Hill and Good Luck Mr Ryan

With 29 caps for England, having got Bristol promoted into the Guinness Premiership in 2005, achieving 3^rd place in the GP, securing Heineken Cup rugby with Bristol, coaching at teams such as; Gloucester, Newport, Harlequins and being former Head Coach of England Students, it is easy to see why Richard Hill was selected as Head Coach at Worcester Warriors.

On the 27^th May the BBC reported “Richard Hill named Worcester Warriors head coach”, I remember the day well as I embarrassingly assumed it was ‘the other’ Richard Hill.

A 2 year contract was reported following his departure from French side Chalon-sur-Saone.  It was widely reported at the time that not only did Hill beat off competition from the likes of Jake White and Graham Rowntree he was also given the nod ahead of his now replacement Dean Ryan.

RH was brought into the club following the Warriors relegation from top-flight rugby and subsequent resignation of Mike Ruddock.  At the time of his appointment the fans views were mixed at best.  Taken from the COYW Forum, when the news was being leaked that Mr Hill may be the next DoR / Head Coach:

“Jeez I hope that's not what we end up with !” Wee Drahm

“When you look at all the names that have been mentioned as applying, this pairing would be the ultimate letdown.” Beav1s

and in response

“Just a tad” Powick Eastander

“oh well that will be the final nail.

The appointment of Richard Hill will finalise my decision to save my hard earned money for another 3 years,

If he lasts that long before the players run him out of town

JP” Faithful_City

When I say mixed, I mean negative.  I’ve not managed to find any pre-confirmation posts that were happy about his potential appointment, other than that from a Bristol fan.

27^th May 2010 the Official Website delightedly announced that Richard Hill was to be named Head Coach at Sixways, following an internal review instigated by Cecil Duckworth, supported by Ian Bell (Rugby Business Consultant) and Dean Richards.

It would appear he was selected primarily for his proven track record in winning the Championship and progressing (with Bristol) to Heineken Cup rugby.  Clearly setting the targets high from day one.

The following months were spattered with new signings and existing squad members signing on for the club.  In June 2010 Tomahawk, Crockett, Andy Williams, Ripol, Higgitt, Shervington and Arscott arrived at the club with Grove and Mullan signing new deals.  With the exception of Shervington, Grove and Mullan you could say that wasn’t the best start to Hill’s reign at Sixways.

The following season, in the RFU Championship, is well documented and I will not go into it in any detail.  Many games were convincingly won, records were broken and Sixways was buzzing with fans looking forward to Premiership rugby again.  The first major worry for the club was the Championship semi-final against Bedford, in which we almost failed at the first hurdle.  A very dramatic late win was needed to progress through to the finals, where we were crowned the eventual winners and secured promotion back to the top flight of English rugby.

Back in the Premiership, September 2011 saw, what is now probably the height of Hill’s Warriors career, newly promoted, already written off, Worcester Warriors record an opening day, home win, against Sale Sharks.  17-12 with what was described at the time as a forwards dominated victory, we were back in the big time, Hill had achieved objective one by getting us back in the Aviva Premiership and objective two, secure premiership rugby was surely in hand with a performance such as this!

It is easy to look back and see the telling signs, but even as far back as September 2011 the signs were there: "We lacked a bit of composure at the end when we needed to keep hold of the ball. We lost it and gave a couple of silly penalties with Alex Grove's yellow card. One or two things crept in and with the clock ticking down, but that is something to learn.” Richard Hill quoted on the official website.  Two years on and that exact same kind of play, silliness and indiscipline may just have cost him his job.

Fast forward to 1^st January 2012 and if you were as unlucky as me, you witness a cold wet Adams Park away win against Wasps.  I feel the only person that wants to forget that game more than me is Ezra Taylor, remember him?  The man with the shortest career in known history.  Wasps was the long awaited debut for Taylor in which, 2 minutes after kick off, he was fallen on, during a line out and did so much damage to his knee he only started full gym training again this year.  A terrible game, in terrible conditions and I seem to remember the 0-6 score line being reported as the lowest ever result in Premiership rugby.  Little did we know then that 15 months later we would still be waiting for our next league away win.  This most definitely has had a massive impact on the decision announced by the club this week, that Hill is out and Ryan is in.

For many the 2012/2013 season has been one to forget.  9^th place with two games remaining, no apparent sign of progress from last season and a host of big name, marquee players leaving the club under a cloud of player discontent. There are plenty of positives from this season, but the sheer fact that objective three has been so obviously missed can not be ignored. 

The Master Plan:

Objective 1 – Promotion – Achieved

Objective 2 – Secure Premiership Rugby – Achieved

Objective 3 – Achieve Heineken Cup Rugby Status – Failed

To achieve objective 3 we would need to end the season in 6^th position.  With two games remaining we are currently 17 points adrift of current placeholders Exeter.  This is not the position of a club about to embark on HC rugby in the 2013/2014 season.  More pressing is the fact Sale are only 2 points behind us and Irish only 3.  A loss this weekend against Quins could result in us dropping to 11^th place, again not a team meeting objective 3 and therefore the right time to make a change?

The club have made their move.  Dean Ryan, once beaten to the role at Sixways by his now predecessor, is our new Director of Rugby.  His role will commence once the 2012/2013 season ends.  The interim time will be managed by Corin Palmer and the current management team. 

Although the official news is bare and the press speculation is high, I think there is one thing for certain, we are in for a lot of changes again this summer. 

My expectation is that two out of the three coaches; Vickery, Larder and Redman will be told their services are no longer required.  New full time back room staff will be appointed and there is room for new playing faces to join us too, based in part on the fact that; Rob O'Donnell, Ceri Jones, Aleki Lutui, Neil Best, Ollie Frost & Shaun Perry are yet to publically confirm their future at Sixways.

If nothing else, there is one thing for certain, we will get more Sky coverage and the post match interviews and analysis will be top draw.

Thank you for all your effort Richard, I do not think many would doubt your commitment to Worcester Warriors and Welcome Dean Ryan, Good Luck!

Also published on COYW April 2013