Rugby Australia CEO Phil Waugh on Joe Schmidt’s future post-Lions

Rugby Australia CEO Phil Waugh has remained tight-lipped about whether Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt will remain in the role beyond the 2025 British and Irish Lions Series, with the New Zealander’s contract set to expire following the three-Test showdown.

Schmidt was announced as Eddie Jones’ successor in January, with the former World Rugby Coach of the Year fronting the media in a press conference at Allianz Stadium alongside Waugh and RA’s high-performance director Peter Horne.

This announcement was received quite positively by Australian rugby fans on social media as they hoped for a resurgence ahead of the Lions Series. The Wallabies had only managed two wins from nine Tests in 2023, which saw them suffer a pool stage exit at the Rugby World Cup.

With Schmidt leading the way, and former England and Lions lock Geoff Parling joining rugby guru Laurie Fisher and scrum genius Mike Cron in a trio of assistant coaches, the dawn of the Wallabies’ new era got underway in July with two clinical wins over Wales.

Australia also registered a solid win over Georgia at Sydney’s Allianz Stadium but would only taste victory in one of their six Rugby Championship Tests. But, after bouncing back during their Spring Tour with triumphs over England and Wales, a lot of fans have called for Schmidt to stay on.

With RA outlining ambitious goals in a five-year strategy paper last week, Schmidt’s name has been back in rugby’s headlines as supporters go searching for answers. But at this stage, Waugh reiterated that RA and the Wallabies need to be prepared for either outcome.

“In line with the behavioural shift that we’ve tried to make culturally is that we do what we say we’re going to do. One thing that Joe was very clear about was that it was a journey to the British and Irish Lions Series,” Waugh told RugbyPass.

“Obviously, as we get closer to that Series, we need to ensure we’re prepared for what may come after that, whether that’s extension with Joe or a shift in coaching structure.

“I probably don’t want to get ahead of ourselves in terms of the decision… we’ve committed to the Lions, we’re focused on the Lions, and clearly we need to ensure that we’ve got planning on different scenarios depending on the outcome with Joe.”

If Schmidt did leave the Wallabies after the Lions Series, RA would need to appoint a fourth head coach into the role in as many years. Schmidt followed Jones, who stepped into the position after Dave Rennie’s stint in charge.

Michael Cheika held the position for more than 65 Tests from 2014 through to the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan, with Australia losing to England in the Quarter-Finals. Rennie was next, with the Super Rugby champion coach going on to record a win percentage of around 35.

With Rennie finishing up in 2023, Jones only returning to Australia’s shores for a single international season, and Schmidt potentially leaving in 2025, possible candidates that have been discussed in the media like Queensland Reds coach Les Kiss may need to step up.

While the Wallabies have shown genuine signs of life under Schmidt, with players like Angus Bell, Fraser McReight, Rob Valetini, Len Ikitau and Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii impressing during the Autumn Nations Series, consistency is desired in sports.

“You want to have consistency in environments,” Waugh explained. “The head coach is clearly a very important part of the puzzle. I think good head coaches surround themselves with really good people across the system who are subject matter experts in their particular area and field.

“What you see with Joe is Joe’s been able to attract the world’s best across different areas of the game which rounds out that coaching and management team nicely.

“The key elements is how do you keep that level of consistency? Whether Joe is retained as head coach or not, how do you keep that level of consistency and culture that is building within the group?”

With the Wallabies’ tough Rugby Championship campaign behind them, the men in gold travelled to the other side of the world to take on the four teams that make up the highly prestigious Lions representative side.

Australia were considered by many to be the underdogs but instead, the rugby world witnessed some inspirational performances from coach Schmidt’s men. It all started against England at Twickenham’s Allianz Stadium, with Max Jorgensen scoring an 84^th-minute winner.

England had taken the lead back with about two minutes left to play, but a beautiful flick pass from Ikitau sent Jorgensen flying down the left wing. For the Aussies to win that Test, back it up a week later in Cardiff, and push world no. 2 Ireland close, it had the country talking.

The Wallabies won six Tests during their first campaign under Schmidt, but it’s how they played that captured sports fans’ imagination in Australia. But as Waugh discussed, there’s still more room to grow and that’s exciting for Aussie rugby.

“Look where we were 12 months ago, look where we are now, I think we’ve made material progress,” he added. “The most pleasing aspect is there’s still so much growth within that environment.

“Whilst we’re in a far better place than we were 12 months ago, I still think there’s enormous growth amongst that cohort and that group of men and that’s probably most pleasing.

“Like all things in sport, you’ve got pressure to perform week in, week out, but you’ve also got big events around the corner that you need to ensure you’re prepared for.

“The big question now is the work that the team needs to do between now and when the Lions come in that first Test on the ninth of July next year.

“It’s a really long way of saying, pleased with the progress – probably most pleasing is there’s still an enormous amount of upside amongst the group.”