After weeks of conjecture, it has been today confirmed that former Irish international back row Simon Easterby will leave his post as Head Coach with Welsh club Scarlets to ascend to the role of Forward’s Coach with his country, Ireland.

A great servant to Scarlets, both on and off the pitch, Easterby made his Scarlets’ debut in 1999 and amassed 196 appearances for the Welsh region and, after a stint as Leinster’s Team Manager, has been employed in the role of Head Coach for the last couple of season.

Easterby will have big shoes to fill with the departing the John Plumtree, who left his Irish post to become the Hurricanes assistant coach, having left quite a legacy behind him on the Irish team’s forward play. Indeed, under Plumtree’s tuition, there was a marked improvement in Ireland’s break down work and particularly their rolling maul, which was a potent weapon during last season’s Six Nations.

Scarlets’ have acted quickly to replace Easterby by hiring New Zealander Wayne Pivac. Pivac has significant coaching experience with both Fiji and Auckland and the Scarlets’ will hope he makes a seamless transition from Southern to Northern Hemisphere Rugby.

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