It’s been the worst kept secret in rugby league for two weeks but now it’s official: Ivan Cleary is the new Wests Tigers coach.
The club have just formally announced that the former Warriors and Penrith mentor will replace the sacked Jason Taylor.
Cleary starts immediately, the club said in a statement issued just minutes ago.
Cleary has been appointed Wests Tigers head coach until the end of the 2020 NRL season.
The 46 year old has coached 252 NRL games at the New Zealand Warriors and Penrith Panthers, plus was head coach of the 2015 Prime Minister’s XIII team and was named the 2014 Daly M Coach of the Year.
His first challenge is to turn around the current slump of the Wests Tigers, who have lost four straight games since winning their first match of the season against Souths.
Less than 24 hours ago the Tigers were outclassed 28-6 by the St George Illawarra Dragons in a round five clash at ANZ Stadium.
Wests Tigers board chairwoman Marina Go welcomed Cleary to the club at a media conference in Wests Leagues club Ashfield.
“On behalf of the Wests Tigers board I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome Ivan to Wests Tigers,” Go said.
“We look forward to him building a strong relationship with our players and staff and working with them long into the future.
“In appointing Ivan as head coach we as a club have worked through a thorough process and are thrilled to be making this announcement today,” she said. “Throughout this process Ivan was incredibly impressive with his vision for this club and where it can go both on and off the field.”
Wests Tigers CEO Justin Pascoe said that he looked forward to working closely with Cleary over the coming seasons.
“In all of my dealings with Ivan he’s shown himself to be an incredibly professional individual with a real passion for the game,” he said.
“He brings to this club a wealth of experience which we believe will be very beneficial for our playing group.
“We have a group of players who are ready to take the next step in their playing careers and as a club we’re confident that Ivan is the man to lead them,” he said.
Cleary said he was looking forward to joining Wests Tigers.
“This is a great opportunity to join a club with a lot of potential,” Cleary said after his appointment was announced.
“I look forward to getting to work with the playing group and coaching staff.
“The Wests Tigers are a huge brand with a strong membership base and a lot of supporters and I look forward to getting stuck in over the coming weeks,” he said.
[social_quote duplicate=”no” align=”default”]“Day one is today and from here we start working on improving, we’ll do a lot of exploring and analysis on how things work at Wests Tigers and how the people within the club work.[/social_quote]
“We need to decide as a group what we want to be and go about achieving this.
“I can’t wait to get to work here,” he said.
“It’s no secret that I’ve missed it, this is a fresh start for me and I’m committed to seeing this club reach its potential and to be the success that I know it can be.”
Pascoe thanked interim head coach Andrew Webster for his efforts over the last two weeks.
“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Andrew Webster for the way that he carried himself over the last few weeks,” Pascoe said.
“He did a terrific job during a difficult time, with the way that he conducted himself a true demonstration of his character.”
