Simon Easterby has played down speculation linking him with the role of Wales’ next full-time head coach, although he did not rule himself out of succeeding the departed Warren Gatland.
The WRU have appointed Cardiff’s Matt Sherratt as the interim head coach for their remaining three games in the 2025 Guinness Six Nations, beginning with their match against Ireland at the Principality Stadium on Saturday (kick-off 2.15pm).
Their intention is to have a permanent appointment in place before this summer’s two-Test tour to Japan, “with all options open” and all things being equal, and if they had cash to burn, Easterby would be an obvious favourite given his long association with the Scarlets as captain and coach, and he lives there with his Welsh wife TV presenter Sarra Elgan, and their two children Soffia and Fredi.
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“I didn’t really know that I had been linked,” said Easterby through a grin which suggested the complete opposite after inevitably being asked about the possibility.
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“No, of course there’s been speculation and that’s what it is, speculation. I’m not in control of that. I love what I do here. I’ve been in this position with the team for a long time and I’m very fortunate with the people I get to work with, both management and players, and for me it’s a dream job.
“Speculation is exactly that, it’s speculation, and not something that I can control.”
Easterby is under contract until the conclusion of the next World Cup, so there remains plenty of obstacles standing in the way of him succeeding Gatland coming to pass. But while pledging his total focus on his role as Ireland’s interim head coach for this Six Nations and his allegiance to the cause after 11 seasons as an assistant coach, Easterby did not rule himself out of consideration when offered the chance to do so.
“Right now this is my only focus and what happens in the future – in a year’s time you could lose your job and we know in sport it’s fairly fluid around people moving from thing to thing. But, like I said, whatever is going on I’ve had no contact with the WRU.
“For me, it’s all guns blazing towards Cardiff on Saturday and make sure that me and the other coaches prepare the team, and whatever speculation goes on outside of that is outside my control.”
