Could easily have said Tony Smith wasn't the right coach for Leeds. Relegated with Huddersfield and hadn't achieved anything. But look how that turned out. Good coaches can be in the wrong environments, we've seen that too.

Not quite the case, the time at Huddersfield was very productive for Tony Smith and definitely wasn't the wrong environment, at least not by the time he'd finished with them.

Whilst Smith did take them down in 2001 it was after Huddersfield had already finished bottom three years in a row before he took over but had not been relegated. That fourth season saw him come in at the same time relegation came back and ironically Huddersfield under his guidance were much more competitive than in the previous years and only went down very narrowly, winning more points and with a notable reduction in the number of absolute hammerings they got. The improvement in the way the team played and Smith's impact across the club was obvious even then.

The following year he brought Huddersfield back up undefeated and then broke the mould by keeping them up when they returned to Super League, setting up the years of relative stability in the top flight which followed. Huddersfield were very disappointed when he said he was leaving, even more so when it was later announced he was coming to Leeds. But his work at Huddersfield meant he had already established himself as a bit of a rising star amongst coaches.

Agree with that. My point was that people could have complained when we brought Smith in because on paper he hadn't achieved anything of note. People cry out for people with huge CV's of accomplishments but those coaches aren't floating around. Clubs look at the factors you've mentioned above to find the right fit. But soke fans just go off the small details they know about someone

Excellent post - describes Smith to a tee - he is all about positive evolution

I see Hetherington has confirmed that Agar will take over Sinfields role at the club.
It will happen when the right coach becomes available says GH it might be this year or next year but no pressure to bring in a new coach yet as Richie is doing a fantastic job.

See it happening in 12 months max

I wonder who they consider the right coach to be

I liked the idea of Tony Smith and Danny McGuire.

Someone they regard to be significantly "better" than Agar - or perhaps at a time when Agar thinks his voice and approach is getting stale, just someone different.

Most people seem to rate Agar. Of course "best" or "better" in coaching terms, at this level, isn't black and white. A coach who is better for one player may well not be better for another.

Should be interesting; I'd expect the young squad to take another step forward next year, and if we look like a horse coming up fast on the rails we should become an attractive place to come and coach again.

I think they will simply wait until a coach of sufficient quality becomes available who is interested in the role. No point appointing someone for the sake of it who we are not fully happy with.

I don`t see it being anyone from SL.
The only decent coach is at Saints so unless he fancies a change it`s likely to be from overseas.
Again not sure who that would be but would like Cleary which is even more unlikely.

And timing is crucial too. A coach like Bluey was perfect for us coming out of the Tony Smith years in 2008 but would have been a disaster in 2004.

Absolutely. Wonder if they’re lining up Sean Long for it.

I think that Leeds will always be an attractive job for any coach and no doubt many names will be banded about and probably about 99% will be pure fantasy. Director of Rugby is obviously a job that interests Agar and he obviously has very good contacts over in Oz. Whoever takes over will obviously need to be able to work with Agar and GH so that could rule out some of the big name coaches who have even bigger egos!
I think Danny McGuire would be an excellent choice but more likely is Ryan Carr or Anthony Seibold who have been linked over the past few months, whatever it will be interesting and I would not be surprised if an appointment is sooner rather than later.

Seibold took a job in union.