“I have so many great memories from what’s been an awesome time with the team”.
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Legendary New Zealand sevens coach Gordon Tietjens announced his retirement Tuesday, just weeks after his side’s failure at the Rio Olympics.
WELLINGTON, Sept 6 New Zealand men’s rugby sevens coach Gordon Tietjens has stepped down after 22 years in charge in the wake of their quarter-final exit at the Rio Olympics.
Tietjens also coached New Zealand to four Commonwealth Games gold medals and is credited with spotting and developing a number of top players, including the All Blacks greats Jonah Lomu and Christian Cullen.
Rugby Editor Nigel Yalden said with the opening round of the World Seven Series less than 3 months away, it would appear New Zealand Rugby have left themselves little time to find a replacement for Tietjens. “You’ve given them the ammunition and we haven’t performed”.
Tietjens was also left to cope with a dwindling supply of players in New Zealand as many top players shunned the game to concentrate on their 15s global or Super Rugby careers. Their dominance of sevens waned as other countries allocated more resources in preparation for the Olympics.
“It’s become intensely competitive and the Olympics proved just how tough it is to win at this level these days”.
From the likes of Eric Rush and Christian Cullen to Ben Smith and Julian Savea, now even young Rieko Ioane, Sir Gordon Tietjens has had a hand in the careers of almost 50 All Blacks.
Current All Blacks fullback Ben Smith said Tietjens was “one of a kind”, who pushed him to the limit.
“He basically single-handedly won us our first (sevens) World Cup in South America (in 2001)”, he said.
“Quite incredible for someone who was so big, so quick, so strong”.
“I gave it everything as a coach”, Tietjens said, reflecting on a hard 12 months but a glittering 22 years with the New Zealand Sevens team.
Tietjens has been a significantly influential figure in the evolution of world sevens and many other coaches have copied his tactics and training methods.
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Mr Wario says he hopes to meet representatives of the International Olympic Committee in a few days or next week.
