Les Kiss under pressure to escape Ulster’s ‘cul-de-sac of doom’
In the wake of the 44-16 drubbing at The Sportsground, Kiss found his future being openly questioned in some sections of the media, though Ulster chief executive Shane Logan was keeping his counsel over Christmas and there has been no comment from the club on speculation in one Sunday newspaper that the Australian faced an imminent exit from Kingspan Stadium.
Appointed in 2014, after the swift dismissal of the relatively successful Mark Anscombe, Kiss’s arrival in Belfast was greeted with general approval by a squad whose international contingent was openly enthusiastic about his defensive expertise with which he continued to assist Irish head coach Joe Schmidt until the end of the 2015 World Cup.
In contrast, over the holiday period, social media has been awash with criticism of the coaches and the players, not an entirely new phenomenon in the province given the troughs and only occasional ‘highs’ of the last few years, and the failure — in particular — to make an impact in Europe.
Concerns about selection policy and inconsistent performances, despite a background of a long injury list and the absence of key players for various reasons well beyond his control, have blighted Kiss even if his team currently sits in a PRO14 quarter-final spot.
Ironically, the genial Australian finds himself at the centre of speculation about his future just a week after completing a ‘double’ over Harlequins in the European Champions Cup which opens the door to qualification for the knockout stages of that competition when pool games resume in mid-January.
La Rochelle visit Kingspan Stadium and Ulster then complete the group stages at Wasps.
But it was the manner of the defeat in Galway which reignited concerns about Ulster’s inability to find a consistent vein of form.
“To be truthful, we’ve just got to be better than that,” Kiss reflected. “It’s a bit of a mystery, no way was that the plan, the way we played in the first 12 minutes particularly.”
Questioned about the side’s continuing profligacy in ceding tries, the former Ireland defence coach was clearly more than just disappointed.
“Teams occasionally do open us up, as Connacht did, those first-up ‘hits’ don’t get made, but I do believe our defence is usually very good.”
Although beaten just four times this season, last month’s poor performances against struggling Southern Kings, Benetton, and the Dragons in the PRO14 had clearly had an impact on attendances in Belfast and on the mood of famously partisan fans.
Kiss is acutely aware of just how important the team’s display against Munster on New Year’s Day, and then against Leinster at the RDS six days later, will be to his club’s season and to his own long-term future in charge.
“You get a good performance, then a really poor one, that’s the ‘bungee cord’ that is Ulster rugby,” was the observation on BBC television of former Ireland coach Eddie O’Sullivan.
“I’m sure they’ll want to respond with a good display against Munster at home, but they must learn to back that up, and that means they must do the same against Leinster at the RDS,” said O’Sullivan, who might conceivably be a candidate should Kiss be considered surplus to requirements.
In the summer the Australian overhauled his coaching panel, recruiting head coach Jono Gibbes from Clermont, and bringing in Dwayne Peel and scrum specialist Aaron Dundon, and a change at the very top of the management would be destabilising.
Gibbes was not in Galway for the Connacht game, having travelled to his native New Zealand for Christmas, and that left Kiss a rather desolate if defiant figure.
“We are a team with its tail between its legs. We’ll look at the game, go through the process and get the right lessons out of it,” said Kiss. “But you can go so deep you can find yourself in a cul-de-sac of doom. Or you can pick out the things that matter.”
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