LAST UPDATE | 3 Mar 2022

THE IRFU HAS confirmed that its director of women’s and 7s rugby, Anthony Eddy, has left his post with immediate effect.

Eddy had been in charge of Irish women’s rugby since 2014 and oversaw an undeniable decline for the Ireland Women’s 15s team, who failed to qualify for this year’s World Cup in New Zealand.

The Australian subsequently gave a controversial media briefing in which his words were perceived as laying the blame for the failure to qualify at the Irish players’ feet.

Soon after that briefing, 62 current and former Irish women’s rugby players wrote to the Irish government expressing their loss of “all trust and confidence” in the IRFU. 

Eddy’s departure comes the day before the IRFU reveals the details of an independent report into Ireland’s failure to qualify for the World Cup, with a media event set for tomorrow.

The IRFU initially indicated the report would be available in January, but it’s understood that have been some complications around publicly revealing all of the information gathered for the report. 

As reported earlier this week, it’s understood that the report contains some sections that may cause discomfort for certain people when revealed to the public, which could explain the delay.

A statement from the IRFU this afternoon confirmed that Eddy “advised the IRFU of his desire to vacate his post,” citing a desire to be closer to family and friends at home.

The IRFU says it will ensure that Eddy’s duties now pass to existing union staff, while also “taking time to reassess the future requirements for the women’s and 7s games.” 

The union thanked Eddy for his service and highlighted that his tenure included the Ireland men’s 7s team qualifying for the Olympic Games for the first time and the Ireland women’s 7s team’s recent silver medal on the World Series in Seville.

“I am proud of each of the teams, the athletes, and staff that I have worked with,” said Eddy.

“I wish all these people and teams the very best and thank the IRFU for their understanding.

“The last two years during Covid have given me time to reflect on the next phase of my career and life. It can be difficult living so far from home, family and friends. Having assessed everything, I’ve decided to change things up, and seek new opportunities.”

IRFU performance director David Nucifora, who appointed Eddy back in 2014, expressed his gratitude for Eddy’s effort.

“I want to thank Anthony for the commitment and expertise he brought to his role,” said Nucifora.

“The IRFU have been very fortunate to have had someone of the calibre of Anthony to have built these programmes up from nothing. I wish him the very best of luck for any new challenge he takes up.

“The programmes will continue for now with existing staffing while we take some time to look for suitably qualified coaches to replace Anthony.”

Originally published at 15.31