Sir Gordon Tietjens has pulled the curtain on his legendary Rugby Sevens coaching career. After 22 years as the leader of the sport where he has been hugely responsible for transforming the Sevens game in New Zealand, into what it is today.
The New Zealand (NZ) rugby announcement was predicted widely, but honestly no one wanted to see it confirmed. Rugby isn’t just a sport in NZ, it’s a way of life. The national team expected to win ‘all the time’ and when results don’t go as planned, heads often roll in the aftermath.
NZ fans have become to expect that their side would always perform–and that was in part wholly due to the input from Tietjens. So when recent performance saw the side not win the Sevens Series, or claim gold in the very first Olympic Games tournament, the surprise was widespread.
In most sports, failure to achieve sometimes entirely goes onto the head coach [see Stuart Lancaster] but this wasn’t the case for the coach of the All Black Sevens side. Respect was always built-in. Tietjens always delivered a team that almost always won, so the rugby public were very much forgiving.
Sir Gordon Tiejtjens was knighted in 2013, and entered into the World Rugby Hall of Fame while still an active coach in 2012. Refusing to be called Sir, Tietjens was the first active sevens coach to ever be inducted.
The news today is sad, because there will never again be another coach like Tietjens. He is responsible for blooding some of New Zealand’s best rugby players. All who have played under Tietjens speak highly of his character and worth ethic.
Main Photo: NEW ZEALAND – FEBRUARY 05: New Zealand coach Gordon Teitjens at the AXA Rugby Sevens International at Westpac Stadium, Wellington, New Zealand, Saturday, February 05, 2005. (Photo by Ross Setford/Getty Images)
