'The club is moving in another direction' - Warriors defence coach leaves with immediate effect
Worcester Warriors defence coach Omar Mouneimne has left Sixways with immediate effect, the club has confirmed. Mouneimne, a former mixed martial arts fighter, joined Warriors as defence & kicking strategy coach in 2017.
And the highly-experienced coach is now on the lookout for a new club following a coaching shake-up at Worcester, with Warriors director of rugby Alan Solomons stating: "The club is moving in another direction."
"Omar’s departure from Sixways is of mutual benefit to both the club and him and is the right time for Omar to move on to other opportunities," Solomons said.
"The club is moving in another direction and the incoming coaching staff will facilitate this by, amongst other things, the good synergy they will provide.
"They all know each other well and JT [Jonathan Thomas] and Iro [Mark Irish] have worked together for a number of years. I have also worked with both JT and Iro and have struck up a good relationship with both them and Jockey [Matt Sherratt].
"Importantly, and over and above the strong synergy which will exist within the new coaching team, it has become clear from the discussions we have had over the last period that we are all aligned.
"This is critical for the club to progress. Omar, on the other hand, after having given valuable and much appreciated service to the club over a number of years, is at a point where he is looking for a fresh challenge.
"In the short term, JT will take over the role of Defence Coach – a role he performed superbly during my short stint at Bristol – and Iro will focus on the forwards with JT lending a hand. We will then review the situation after the conclusion of the 2019/2020 competition.
"On a personal note I would like to thank Omar, who I have worked with for many years, for all he has done for the club and wish him well in his future endeavours."
Mouneimne started his coaching career in 2006 with South Africa's Sevens team in the World Series before moving to Super Rugby side the Stormers in 2008, helping them reach the 2010 Super Rugby final.
He also helped Western Province reach the semi-finals of the Currie Cup in 2009 and the final in 2010, before moving to international rugby as Italy defence coach in 2010.
A spell at Southern Kings followed before Mouneimne moved to Edinburgh Rugby, where he was part of a team that reached the European Challenge Cup final in 2015 before a he joined Lyon in the Top 14.
He previously worked with former Warriors director of rugby Gary Gold at Durban-based Sharks, helping them reach the Super Rugby quarter-finals in the 2015 season.
Latest Comments
You forget this is Rassie Erasmus who is still holding the Springbok keys. Even with Felix Jones orchestrating a really tight RWC SF last year. It still wasn't enough to get England past their particular Springbok Monkey in world cups. The reason is FJ was going off of what they did in 2019 not necessarily adapting to current Springboks. So yes, Australia can get passed England because let's be honest, England have a one track strategy, Springboks do not. Even with rush defense I wouldn't be surprised if Rassie continually tweaks it. Also bear in mind Rassie is happy to sacrifice a few mid year and inter World Cup matches to pin point how opposition plays and how to again tweak strategies to get his Springboks in peak performance for the next World Cup. As much as most teams like to win games in front of them and try to win everything, Rassie always makes sure to learn and train for the greatest showdown International Rugby has to offer. Tbh, most people remember World Cup wins and ignore intermediate losses as a result but will remember also WC losses, Ireland, even if they won games in the interim. So even if games are won against the Springboks, it's likely Rassie is just getting a feel for how opposition is moving and adapt accordingly…in time.
Go to commentsDanny don't care. He pretends to care but he don't. He says all this stuff to justify his reasoning but no one can claim that legitimately. He knew exactly what he was doing and wondered if his old team mate would overlook it, which he did. Ref has got to be sidelined or properly trained. It's one thing for refs to move up the ranks but if it was me I would require refs to either have played in different clubs or not at all having the temptation to bias in high stakes games like this. This has got to be stamped out. But then again World Rugby is so destroying the game of rugby in an attempt to be more “safe” and “concussion free”. What they are doing is making it more infuriating for the fans and more difficult for the refs to officiate evenly and consistently. It's fast become Australian Rules football. If guys don't want concussions, they should have played chess. Stop complaining you oldies of the game. When they played the game was vastly heavier hitting than it is now but of course they can't see that.
Go to comments