It is just over a year since Kevin Sinfield bade farewell to Leeds Rhinos and made a cross-code switch to rugby union giants Leicester Tigers. Sinfield, the legendary former Leeds player who captained the club to seven Super League titles, had grown unhappy in his role as director of rugby at Headingley.
He spent three years in the job, having initially returned to the club to take up the newly-created role in July 2018 following the sacking of head coach Brian McDermott. Due to the effects of the pandemic, Sinfield’s job had become more administrative and less about working within the actual rugby department.
And so he accepted an offer to join Leicester as defence coach and work under Steve Borthwick at the biggest club in England in the 15-a-side code. Sinfield has since thrived, helping the Tigers to the Premiership title in his first season after they beat Saracens in the final at Twickenham on June 18.
Read more: Leeds Rhinos favourite Lee Smith's pride after son lands Academy deal
Remarkably, their success in Sinfield’s first year at Welford Road also saw Leicester create history as they topped the Premiership table after every single round of the 2021-22 campaign. Call it the ‘Sinfield effect’.
Twelve months on, however, Leeds have still not replaced their inspirational former leader. The plan had been for Richard Agar to move ‘upstairs’ at some point and fill the void that Sinfield left.
Agar quit as head coach just six games into this season and, despite Leeds leaving the door for him to return to the club – quite possibly in the director of rugby role – that will now not happen.
Agar, it was recently announced, is moving to the other side of the world to become assistant coach at the New Zealand Warriors from next season. So with Sinfield and Agar well and truly out of the picture at Leeds, and no director of rugby to be seen, where does it leave the club?
Long-serving chief executive Gary Hetherington has, of course, been in situ at Headingley since 1996. But it was thought that by having a Sinfield or an Agar in the director of rugby role would free up many of Hetherington’s task and allow him to relinquish the reins at some point. In other words, to retire.
Hetherington, now in his late sixties, still effectively runs the club as CEO and for an organisation as big as Leeds Rhinos, that is some workload. Hence why the director of rugby position was created four summers ago with Sinfield initially given responsibility for all rugby matters including team selection, preparation, performance and results of the first team.
When ‘Sir Kev’ left 12 months ago, his job was effectively shared by a combination of Hetherington and Agar, at least until the latter left the club in March. Will Leeds end up appointing a permanent successor to Sinfield?
Tony Smith remains out of work since leaving Hull Kingston Rovers and has been linked with the director of rugby role at Leeds. Now it appears that Leeds are motoring along just fine without a director of rugby, as well as saving on a hefty salary at a time of economic difficulty post-Covid.
Smith’s nephew Rohan appears to be building something special at Headingley following his mid-season arrival as head coach. But he does not come across as someone who wants to get too caught up in negotiating contracts with player agents.
Rather, his main focus is on performance and he is doing a very job in that regard right now. Hence why Leeds may yet look to bring in a director of rugby to perform such tasks in order to take the strain off Hetherington and allow head coach Smith to focus purely on coaching the team.
Right now, the wheels are continuing to turn at Headingley with decisions being made over incomings and outgoings, yet there is a nagging suspicion that a new director of rugby will be appointed at some stage.
Quite when that will happen and who that person might be remains to be seen.
Read next
Everything Rohan Smith said on huge Warrington win, Liam Tindall injury and play-off prospects
Leeds Rhinos player ratings as Rohan Smith's side continue play-off charge
Leeds Rhinos promote twelve Scholarship starlets including son of three-time Grand Final winner
Rohan Smith's key Leeds Rhinos selection decision to make for Warrington Wolves clash
League 1 player hits back after being sacked due to hangover
