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Stuart Lancaster has left his post as England coach
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England became the first primary host nation to be eliminated during the Pool stages of a Rugby World Cup
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It was the first time the men in white had failed to reach the knockout stages
England head coach Stuart Lancaster has left his post following the team’s early exit from the Rugby World Cup.
Lancaster admitted he was “extremely saddened” with both the team’s performance on home soil and to be leaving a role that he took with such optimism back in April 2012.
He said: “I ultimately accept and take responsibility for the team’s performance and we have not delivered the results we all hoped for during this tournament.
“I did, however, want to take part in the review to ensure I understood the views of others before making a decision.
“The reality is that, while many aspects of the review were very positive, we didn’t achieve success on the field when it mattered and we all have to take responsibility for that but me especially as head coach.”
England and Lancaster had high hopes heading into the tournament as the host nation, however, a disastrous campaign saw the men in white fail to reach the knockout stages of a Rugby World Cup for the first time in their history.
Lancaster has stepped down from his post by ‘mutual consent’, bringing his three-year reign as England chief to an end in which he guided his side to 28 wins from 46 games while coming second in all of the past four Six Nations campaigns, alongside a memorable 38-21 win over New Zealand in one of his first matches in charge.
The 46-year-old Cumbrian believes he has left England in a strong position.
Lancaster added: “I took on the role in difficult circumstances and it has been a huge challenge to transition the team with many hurdles along the way. However, I am immensely proud of the development of this team and I know that there is an incredibly strong foundation for them to progress to great things in the future.
“We have played some excellent rugby and it was always going to be tough to get the right level of experience into them in time for 2015. It is a young group of players with the huge majority available for the Rugby World Cup in Japan in 2019, where I believe their recent experience will make them genuine contenders.”
The recruitment process for Lancaster’s successor begins immediately.