The rugby federations of six Australian states or territories demanded on Friday the resignation of the president of the Australian Federation (Rugby Australia) Hamish McLennan, following the unprecedented elimination of the Wallabies in the first round of the World Cup in October. In an open letter, six of eight union presidents are calling for an extraordinary general meeting of Rugby Australia’s board to oust Hamish McLennan if he ignores their call to resign, saying they have lost “confidence or faith in one’s ability to lead.
This ultimatum follows a dark year for the Australian selection under the leadership of Eddie Jones, who resigned at the end of October. Ten months after his return to the helm of the Wallabies, the 63-year-old technician threw in the towel due to the World Cup fiasco. Under his leadership, Australia won only two out of nine test matches and failed to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time in its history.
In place since 2020, McLennan, 57, played a key role in the decision in January to replace former coach Dave Rennie with Jones. “Over the past 12 months, Mr McLennan has made a series of decisions which have damaged the status and reputation of our (level of) game and which have caused us to question his judgment and understanding of the sport high-level,” write the signatories of the letter.
“His decisions and captaincy choices directly led to a historic failure at the Men’s Rugby World Cup and the Wallabies’ international ranking at a historically low level (ninth), with all the unfortunate public fallout that ensued. “.