Mike Prendergast insists Munster head coach ambitions won't impact current role
FOCUSSED: Munster attack coach Mike Prendergast insists his ambitons to take over as head coach won't impact his current role. Pic: ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan
Mike Prendergast has insisted his ambitions to become Munster’s next head coach will not impact his current role in charge of attack yet that does not mean he is ignoring the possibility of making the step up.
The 47-year-old on Tuesday confirmed his interest in succeeding former boss Graham Rowntree, who departed Munster by mutual consent on October 29.
Prendergast was a key member of Rowntree’s coaching ticket, joining alongside defence coach and fellow former Munster player Denis Leamy in the summer of 2022, and helping their province land a first trophy in a dozen years the following May to cap a remarkable first season in which Munster’s attack was transformed by the former Stade Francais and Racing 92 assistant.
With Munster in no rush to appoint a successor, though, Prendergast must bide his time, wait for a call to interview for the vacancy alongside other candidates and keep putting his best foot forward in his present position to ensure the team continues on the upward trajectory that has been embarked on under interim head coach Ian Costello and newly arrived temporary performance consultant Chris Boyd.
His candidacy will not affect the day job, starting with this week’s preparations for Friday night’s visit to Stade Pierre Fabre and a Champions Cup round two pool date with Castres.
"I’ll just keep it to business as usual,” Prendergast said. “We have Ian leading it up, he gives us great freedom as a coach to look after our own domains and you have Chris in there and will be for the next few weeks, he's a great sounding board.
“But in terms of does it change anything for me coming in in the morning? Absolutely not, absolutely not. I just keep doing what I'm doing.
“If you do (change), I think players and coaches see through that. You've got to be true and honest to yourself and that's the honest answer. The club will make a decision, I'm sure, over the next number of weeks, maybe months. I'll just keep cracking on with what we're doing.
“We're in a busy part and that helps because you're on it week in, week out with massive games and that keeps you massively focused as well. I love doing the attack, it's something I take huge pride in and there's a lot in it so if you're thinking of something else or you're a bit off form, the players are the first group who will latch onto that. So I wouldn't leave it distract me."
It would be difficult to imagine Prendergast not retaining an active involvement in Munster’s attack were he to be promoted to head coach yet his love of the assistant role does not dampen his desire to prove himself at a more elevated level, whatever the increased demands that come with the top job.
"I'm fortunate to have someone like (skills coach) Mossy Lawler there who's an experienced attack coach. So if it was to materialise that way, if the decision came, you have someone in the building that you'd be able to share the workload, along with the other coaches.
“We've been together, there's a good dynamic. Denis, myself, someone like (forwards coach consultant) Alex Codling coming in (to fill the vacuum created by Andi Kyriacou’s exit) has been a breath of fresh air and his stats over the last few weeks show that as well.
"So I won't lie saying I haven't thought about it and what would happen, you have to think of all these things because it's such a big opportunity, such a big job.
“If it didn't fall my way, I'm here for the next two years doing the attack. But… the name is in there and I have envisaged being a head coach, yeah."
Business as usual also extends to the continual planning for next season, a task which is overseen by Costello in his regular job as Head of Rugby Operations with input from the assistants around player recruitment and contracting.
"We have to keep going,” Prendergast said. “The game evolves so quickly, recruitment evolves so quickly.
“To be fair to Ian, he would have that really well set up and would have been in discussions previously going along. He's that continuation and then he would sit down with us in terms of what we would feel is the right profile.
“Look at someone like ‘Tuckie’ Abrahams coming in this year. He was a guy that we felt, in terms of his profile, and over the last few weeks he has shown that, it's how you play the game. So he's a great man for going from edge to edge, he stresses defenders, he's got great speed.
“It's unlike France where I remember doing recruitment and you're changing 10 or 12 players up and at times, you just make rash decisions because it's so competitive over there. Here, it's a small bit different.
"There's generally two or three players who come in so you need to get it right. You profile them from a rugby perspective, as a human being, how they'd fit in, family, etc. Tuckie is a really good example of that but we're continuing to crack on and just trying to get the most competitive squad we can, age profile, everything comes into it.
"There's a lot of discussions around that as well, so you're busy out here every day."
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