FORMER Irish international Geordan Murphy has been appointed Director of Rugby at Leicester Tigers.
Murphy, who has been with the East Midlands Club since 1998, was appointed Head Coach 20 months ago but will move into the Director of Rugby role from July 1 when former England second row Steve Borthwick takes up the post of Head Coach.
Murphy, who initially stepped into the role of head coach in September 2018, said: “Steve has coached at the highest level of the game for almost a decade and brings with him a wealth of experience to Leicester Tigers.
“We are excited about this next step on the club’s journey, with Steve playing a major role in that, and we are committed to the hard work we know is necessary to see Tigers achieving the results we expect of ourselves in Leicester,” he added.
“There is no quick-fix and each and every member of our club, from players to coaches and staff to supporters, will need to play their part in seeing us right the wrongs of recent seasons.
Speaking in an interview for the Leicester Tigers website, Murphy went on to call for patience from all, inside and outside the organisation.
“You can’t just have a magic bullet and turn things around, it will definitely take time, he said, “this is the start of a project.”
“We are starting from the bottom…you can’t just expect to win, we have to build, and we have to grow.”
The club announced Borthwick would be joining the ranks back in January.
“I am delighted to be joining Leicester Tigers as head coach,” the former Bath and Saracens player and England forwards coach said.
“To get Leicester Tigers back to the top is a great challenge and one I am very excited about,” Borthwick added.
Before the Premiership shutdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, Leicester Tigers were in pole position for relegation, which they narrowly avoided.
On the Tigers current position, Borthwick added: “We realise that we have a lot of work to do, and I know that everybody at the club is determined to work tirelessly to succeed in this challenge.”
“We also know that every single one of our fantastic supporters will be doing all they can to help drive this team forward.
“What has been evident to me is that the pain caused by Tigers being where the club is on the table has been felt by everyone – the players, coaches, staff and supporters.
“This is something we need to change and we will do so by pulling everyone who is a part of this club even tighter to the team and taking on opponents together.”
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