Rugby Canada has shared with RugbyPass a video that outlines the process that led to Steve Meehan’s appointment as men’s national team head coach.
Following the departure of Kingsley Jones last month, Meehan was announced as the ideal candidate to lead Canada’s quest for Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027 qualification.
According to the video, more than 150 candidates were considered as part of an “extensive” search, with 18 placed on a longlist that was whittled down to a shortlist of five.
Former Bath and Toulon coach Meehan was hired following an interview involving several members of the Rugby Canada board, including Chair Kathleen McGinn, CEO Nathan Bombrys, High Performance Director Stephen Aboud and a World Rugby representative.
The video states the interview panel were in “unanimous agreement” that Meehan was the right person for the job.
“The decision to replace the head coach (Jones) was not a reactive or emotional decision. Rather, it was a result of analysing the relationship between team results, team performances, team selection, team preparation, staff effectiveness, player feedback and team strategies,” the video states.
“A needs analysis of the team’s performances in current context was undertaken to produce a coach profile that would best satisfy the team’s needs. Six categories were examined with priorities for the role identified in each category.”
The video continues: “The profile identified the need for a strong technical coach rather than a director of coaching co-ordinator. A candidate with credible high performance senior coaching experience and competence in developing team attack.
“The range of coaches considered was extensive, with each coach being examined under coaching profile and desired competencies and characteristics.
“In summary, over 60 teams were considered, including clubs and national teams. Over 150 head coaches and assistant coaches were considered.
“The first identification process identified 18 coaches who were strong considerations. Further filtering based on the status and availability of these coaches resulted in a list of five coaches identified.
“Each of these five coaches were contacted directly to explore their opinions, perspectives and interests.
“Finally, a prioritised list of coaches was identified from which the best fit candidate (Meehan) underwent an interview with a representation of Rugby Canada Chair and two board members, World Rugby High Performance Director, Rugby Canada’s CEO and High Performance Director.
“Following this meeting, there was a unanimous agreement that this person was an excellent choice to assume the role of Canada’s senior men’s 15s head coach.”
Meehan has been charged with returning Canada to Rugby World Cup after they missed out on qualification for the men’s tournament in 2023 for the first time.
