Rugby: Bay sevens teams search for coaches

The departure of Bay of Plenty women's sevens coach David Mays means neither of the province's representative sides currently has a coach. Photo/File

The self-appointed "spiritual home of sevens rugby" does not currently have two senior representative provincial coaches to rub together.

The Bay of Plenty Rugby Union, which will host a second successive national sevens tournament in Rotorua in January, is without a coach for either the men's or women's sides.

Former women's coach David Mays is no longer in the role, with both sides tight-lipped on what led to the split.

"It's not really something I want to lay out in the public domain to be honest," Bay of Plenty Rugby Union chief executive Mike Rogers said yesterday.

"From our point of view it hasn't worked, it's not a good move to highlight it."

Mays, who was unpaid and working in a voluntary capacity, preferred not to comment.

All seemed to be going well less than three weeks ago, when Mays' aspirations for the programme were included in a union release promoting a women's sevens physical screening day at ASB Arena.

"We are a new sevens programme, entering our third year of qualifications for nationals," the release read.

"Our player base has grown from 11 to 34 in two years. Our aim is to raise our standards and performance standards by creating a performance and accountable culture."

The side is ranked seventh in the country, with Mays stating the goal was to achieve a top-four ranking by building depth and competition for places by implementing an earlier talent identification process.

Rogers said the job will be advertised in the next few weeks after a men's coach had been found to replace Rodney Gibbs, who is instead focusing on his role as part of the Bay of Plenty Steamers coaching staff.

Four candidates have been short-listed for the role, with interviews taking place yesterday.