Richard Graham's appointment set to keep Reds a Super Rugby force when Ewen McKenzie departs
Jim Tucker
news.com.au APRIL 17, 2012
RICHARD Graham's shock appointment as Reds coach for next year is a carefully planned strategy which can sustain the success of Queensland rugby when Ewen McKenzie is headhunted for the Wallabies' top job.
McKenzie will still be heavily involved in the day-to-day running of the Reds' next season in a new, over-arching role as director of coaching when he helps Graham guide the side.
It is McKenzie who has helped hand-pick his own successor which makes the shock waves even greater in Perth, where Graham was viewed as a long-term boss to extend his two seasons in charge of Western Force.
Queensland Rugby has lured Graham home to the state where he played for the Reds by offering him the most prized Super Rugby coaching job in the country and a champion team.
"I will still be overseeing the rugby department. We're just moving towards a more European-style model," said McKenzie, who coached French club Stade Francais before leading the Reds in 2010.
"Richard coming to the Reds is a chance for me to grow as a professional person.
"I've been an assistant, a head coach and now I have the chance to progress to being a director of coaching in 2013.
"It will be a transition to a director of rugby at the state governing body in 2014 and beyond, while ensuring we have the best rugby coach at the Reds in Richard for many years to come."
Queensland Rugby chief executive Jim Carmichael made no mention of McKenzie's almost certain future as a Wallabies coach for 2014 or 2016 when announcing the surprise, new coaching structure.
The unspoken theme is that the Reds do not want to be caught with their pants down without a top coach and risking their stellar revival when McKenzie is sought to coach the Wallabies post-Robbie Deans.
Footy clubs endlessly talk of succession plans for players, administrators and coaches yet rarely take charge of their own future, which was the damning scar on Queensland rugby for a decade before McKenzie's arrival.
The Reds are actually taking charge of their own destiny rather than reacting when it is too late.
In January, McKenzie recommitted to the Reds for an extra season to include 2014.
McKenzie will focus more fully on vital recruitment-and-retention next year as well as feeding Graham information so the Reds build on what they have, rather than start from zero again as with unplanned coaching changes.
"To be honest, we didn't want another rugby technician.
"We wanted a likeminded coach who understands the totality of rugby and where we are trying to take this business," McKenzie said of Graham.
Queensland Rugby chairman Rod McCall is convinced McKenzie will get his shot at the Wallabies but is equally certain the longer he is involved with Queensland rugby the better.
"He is one of the pillars to fix it for good so it's strong for the next 20 years," McCall said.
