Raelene Castle delivers selfless message to Wallabies coach Dave Rennie

Despite Raelene Castle’s ugly exit from Australian rugby, new Wallabies coach Dave Rennie has revealed the selfless message she gave him following her departure.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 23: Dave Rennie speaks during the 2020 Super Rugby Media Launch at Rugby Australia HQ on January 23, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Hanna Lassen/Getty Images)

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Dave Rennie was still urged to come to Australia in a phone call from Raelene Castle even after she resigned and the news had “gutted” the new Wallabies coach.

If the sudden exit of his greatest advocate rocked him into reconsidering his post for a moment, Rennie wasn’t letting on in a strong confirmation of his plans from Glasgow.

The six-week suspension to world rugby has not been wasted by Rennie, who has been able to make a flying start to planning while his Glasgow Warriors have been in lockdown.

Rennie had made more than 40 planning calls to players of interest and coaches before Rugby Australia’s chief executive was pushed to resign last week.

“I’m really gutted at the decision to move Raelene on,” Rennie told the Press Association in Glasgow.

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Dave Rennie is still ‘very committed’ to the Wallabies role.

“As I have stated all along, she’s a big part of the reason I decided to sign with Australia.

“I was really impressed with her. She had a real clear plan of what the next few years would look like.

“So I’m really disappointed. But she exited with real dignity and class and the first thing she said to me was she still wants me to go to Australia (on his three-and-a-half year deal).”

Rennie said he was “still very committed” and had spoken to the RA board as well as Director of Rugby Scott Johnson to get a clear idea of what the future now looked like.

Johnson gave a snapshot of all Rennie had put into his new role already even though he doesn’t officially start as Wallabies boss until late June.

“Dave’s a good man with good ethics and he wants to get it right so he’s been on the phone to me two or three times a week and more often with his assistant coaches (Matt Taylor and Scott Wisemantel) to go through planning,” Johnson said.

The common denominator for the Wallabies’ three new coaches was knowing Johnson so the unscripted break during the health crisis has enabled the trio to gel more and more.

“The three coaches have been able to get their footy philosophies out to each other and this break has also been really good for talking through ‘individual player plans’,” Johnson said.

Rennie has spoken to coaches Dan McKellar (Brumbies), Brad Thorn (Reds), Dave Wessels (Rebels) and Rob Penney (Waratahs) to dive into the make-up of a preliminary group of more than 35 players of national interest.

Dave Rennie (R) with Raelene Castle. Picture: Nikki Short

The alignment so players will get consistent messages about physical targets and skills to improve is a positive that hasn’t always been so evident.

There were 26 competition models at one stage for how the disrupted season reboot could look but the start date for a domestic competition could potentially be on the July 3-4-5 weekend.

RA executive chairman Paul McLean made the strong point on “understanding what the broadcaster would like” so meetings with Fox Sports will also shape the look.

If it becomes a five-team, home-and-away model over 10 weeks or so, SANZAAR will also have a say so the domestic competitions in New Zealand and South Africa are layered for maximum punch for broadcasters.

Rennie’s arrival will come with a twisted bonus.

He was to arrive in late June with only a rushed week before his maiden voyage against Ireland in Brisbane on July 4 but the three Tests of that month are sure to be canned.

It means he will have months to plan for his first Test in charge, after a two-week isolation period, when he does fly in because Test rugby may not resume until October.

Rugby’s billionaire is ‘force’ of nature rugby needs

Andrew Forrest has the passion, resources and acumen to help revive the game.

The stunning prospect of the Western Force joining rugby’s “Crisis Comp” is proof of how overdue it is for Rugby Australia to work with mining billionaire Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest, writes Jim Tucker.

A key call within the cohort of 10 former Wallabies’ captains pushing for change is bringing Forrest’s acumen inside the tent after three years on the outer.

Without such a force of nature behind them, the Perth-based side might have disappeared when they were chopped from Super Rugby by RA amid anger and disagreement in 2017.

Instead, the Force stand proudly as 2019’s National Rugby Championship winners and at the heart of Forrest's Global Rapid Rugby plan, which would have embraced teams in China, Malaysia, Samoa and Fiji from March-to-May but for the health crisis.

“It has shocked me for some time why you wouldn’t bring someone like him into rugby’s inner circle,” Force coach Tim Sampson said.

“You can’t ignore someone like Andrew, and it’s not just his capability around finance.

“His passion to support the Force, and Australian rugby, is as impressive and I include his wife, Nicola, too for her positivity towards the game.

“He has vision as well as the drive to be successful and innovate, so it’s great to hear that all he has done to keep the Force going may mean a fantastic chance to get on the field against Super Rugby sides when rugby comes back in early July.

Andrew Forrest has done everything possible to keep the Force going.

“He’s in it for the long haul and rugby is blessed to have him.”

Forrest and his wife gave away $520 million this month to their charitable Minderoo Foundation to assist in buying health equipment to fight coronavirus as well as bushfire relief.

The Force would play beside the Reds, Waratahs, Brumbies and Rebels, under one domestic series model, because border restrictions rule out overseas sides.

RA’s poor finances, with a $9.4 million loss on the 2019 books, is the code’s underlying problem, so savvy financial men like Forrest and new RA board member Peter Wiggs, with his success at rebuilding companies, are key players.

Australia’s former national director of coaching Dick Marks goes as far as saying Forrest “is the key to uniting and repairing the game with his resources and acumen”.

Western Australia’s easing of restrictions meant nine Force players could train with a fitness coach, whereas just two players can gather in Queensland or NSW.

Originally published as Raelene Castle delivers selfless message to Wallabies coach Dave Rennie