Leicester Tigers' post-Cheika dream coaching ticket emerges

Graham Rowntree and Richard Wigglesworth have emerged as the dream team that Leicester Tigers will turn to, to replace Michael Cheika when he steps down at the end of the season.

On Thursday, Cheika officially announced the worst secret in the game that he would be leaving the club when his one-year contract runs out later this year.

It came a day after RugbyPass revealed that the Tigers have put Glasgow Warriors boss Franco Smith on their list of possible replacements for Cheika, who only arrived at Welford Road last year when Dan McKellar was dismissed.

Jonah Lomu destroys England at 1995 RWC | RPTV

Jonah Lomu destroys England at 1995 RWC | RPTV

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Cheika had the option of a second season at the Tigers, who are fourth in the Premiership table, 11 points off leaders Bath, and are in the last 16 of the Champions Cup, but has decided to return to Australia, where his family are based.

Ironically, the Tigers will travel to Scotstoun on April 5th, where they will come face-to-face with South African-born former Italy boss Smith for a place in the quarter-finals.

Former England defence coach Felix Jones, who left his job in December, is also in the running, but according to newspaper reports, he would rather stay in the international game.

RugbyPass broke the news two weeks ago that Tigers legend Graham Rowntree, who has been out of work since leaving Munster last October, has been interviewed by his former club.

And we have been told that the plan being worked on is that he would become the Tigers’ new director of rugby and that Richard Wigglesworth would return to the club as their new head coach.

Wigglesworth ended his long playing career with a spell at the club and stepped into the head coach role when the RFU recruited Steve Borthwick and his sidekick Kevin Sinfield before he followed them to Twickenham.

The plan, however, would need to be rubber-stamped by Borthwick, but could he stand in the way of Wigglesworth progressing his coaching career with a return to the East Midlands?