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Ex-Springboks assistant Frans Ludeke a shock contender to land URC job
By Neil Fissler
Kubota Spears boss Frans Ludeke has emerged as a shock contender to take over the reins at the financially troubled United Rugby Championship outfit Ulster next season.
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South African Ludeke, who celebrates his 56th birthday today [April 24], led Kubota Spears, where he has been coaching since 2016, to their first Japan Rugby League One crown last season.
The former Springboks assistant coach gained nine years of Super Rugby experience with the Bulls and Cats before coaching Fiji’s forwards and running their lineout game at the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
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He was a leading candidate to take over the Japanese national team when Jamie Joseph departed after the Cherry Blossoms exited from the pool stages of the World Cup last year following defeats to England and Argentina.
Ludeke eventually missed out on the appointment to former England boss Eddie Jones, who was given the job for the second time after he walked out on Australia just 10 months into a five-year contract.
Kubota Spears have struggled this season after missing Bernard Foley for much of the campaign. They are seventh in the table, 32 points behind runaway leaders Saitama Wild Knights.
Ulster put Richie Murphy in charge at Kingspan Stadium when they sacked Dan McFarland in February as they looked to the Ireland U20s coach to get the best out of their young players.
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Murphy has got a one-year contract on the table to stay in Belfast next season, but it has not been signed yet as he looks for a longer-term deal, which has led Ulster bosses to speak to Ludeke.
Ludeke, who led the Bulls to Super Rugby titles, would have to accept strict financial restraints, with Ulster making cutbacks to their planting squad after a couple of poor years of financial results.
Not good to hear Ulster described as “financially troubled”. Did not think it was getting to that level. I would hope the Irish system of spreading players of talent away from Leinster would kick in now. Better to have a Leinster fringe player with Ulster or Connacht, then getting only a few games a season in Dublin. 10, for example, would seem to be a case for spreading the talent.
I would not be at all adverse to a SA man coming in as head coach/DR. Ludeke is worth trying. Certainly got a long and impressive coaching career at this level…..149 games in SR, then Japan, 30 years experience. And Ulster’s ledger of successful SA coaches and players is on the positive side. Is talk of Ruan Pienaar interested in coming back as a coach…..could be a good combination with Ludeke. And Pienaar and family would have no settling in to do, one would judge. He loved life in Ulster when there, by all reports.