HOW BAD IS ROB PENNEY AS CRUSADERS COACH???

CHECK THE FACTS.

Analyzing Penney’s Coaching Record: How Bad Is It?

But just how bad is his record, when you line him up against all the other coaches in the 28-year history of the competition, in all its various guises?

The answer: Bad.

Four Campaigns, Seven Wins, 23 Losses

Penny has overseen four campaigns – three with the Waratahs in 2020 and 2021 and one with the Crusaders this year – where his side’s have mustered an overall record of seven wins and 23 losses.

Mixed Results and Missed Playoffs

In Super Rugby in 2020, his Waratahs had one win and five losses before the Covid-19 pandemic gripped the world and the competition was put on ice.

In the subsequent Super Rugby Australia season, they ended with a 4-4 record, failing to qualify for the three-team playoff series.

Consecutive Losses Lead to Dismissal

In the second edition of Super Rugby Australia the following year, they started with five consecutive losses.

Waratahs officials had seen enough, leading to Penney’s dismissal. This should have sent a message to the Crusaders chief executive Colin Mansbridge that he can not coach at this level.

But no they hired him.

The Crusaders’ Unprecedented Struggles

Two seasons passed before Razor Robertson left for the All Blacks job after becoming the most successful coach in Super Rugby history.

With 12 rounds in the books and three to go, the Crusaders are 2-9. 

They have now lost more matches in 2024 than in any previous year.

The Grim Statistics

The upshot is that Penney has a 7-23 record as a Super Rugby head coach.

There are 75 coaches who have coached at least 30 Super Rugby matches, from Colin Cooper and Frans Ludeke, who each oversaw 138 in their time, down to Penney and the four others he joined on that mark this weekend.

Of those 75, show 73 have registered a better win percentage than Penney’s 23%.

Robertson tops the chart at 84%, followed by Sir Graham Henry, whose Blues side won 82% of their games from 1996 to 1998; former Hurricanes boss Chris Boyd on 76% and former Crusaders coach Robbie Deans and current Chiefs coach Clayton McMillan, whose teams won 74% of the time.

Penney’s mark of 23% is 3% worse than that of the man above him – Glenn Moore, the coach of the Highlanders from 2008 to 2010. The lone man below him on 22% is Tim Sampson, who oversaw just eight wins during 36 matches in charge of the Western Force from 2020 to 2022.

Penney’s Overall Ranking Among All Super Rugby Coaches

Expanding the criteria to include all Super Rugby coaches, not just those who have reached the 30-match mark, Penney ranks 108th out of 126. At the top of the list is Blues coach Vern Cotter, who boasts a 90% win rate in his first season after 10 matches.

The Future Looks Grim

So what now.

If the Crusaders lose all three matches in 2024, he will fall below Sampson to sit 66th out of 66 on 21%. There is a good chance of this happening.

Time for Change

Now, I don’t like knocking coaches, but this is the Crusaders for gods sake, and it can not continue into 2025.The board must be strong and move this guy on. NOW.

Forget nice guys and all that rubbish. We, the fans deserve better.