It was 'time for a new voice' - Potts on McWilliams departure

The IRFU hope to be able to announce a new head coach for the women's national team in a couple of months and stressed that former head coach Greg McWilliams' departure was a mutual decision.

McWilliams, who had been in charge since late 2021, left the role at the start of this month following Ireland’s TikTok Six Nations wooden spoon campaign.

Ireland finished bottom of the table with no points after five games in which they were without the services of the Sevens players, who are hoping to qualify for the Olympic Games via a World Series event in Toulouse this weekend.

The union released a statement last week to say that McWilliams had left the position "by mutual consent".

"As soon as the tournament was over we met with Greg and we both agreed that it was time to bring in a new voice for the team," IRFU CEO Kevin Potts told RTÉ Sport when asked why McWilliams departed.

"We thank Greg for everything he has done, but collectively it was felt it was time for a new voice and we just made that collective decision.

"So, we thank him for everything he has done, but it’s the right decision at this point, we believe."

Gillian McDarby, the IRFU’s head of women’s performance and pathways, in response to the suggestion that McWilliams was fired, added: "First of all, it was a mutual decision with Greg. He wasn’t fired.

"I just want to put that out there. It was a mutual decision with both of us.

"In terms of his replacement, John McKee is currently head coach at the moment, and we’ve actually started the process so it will take us a couple of months to get the right person in place."

Potts and McDarby were speaking at the IRFU’s Women in Rugby briefing at the Sport Ireland campus in Dublin, where it was announced that the union had