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Mar 22

EXCLUSIVE: Dai Young on Wasps’ turnaround and future, losing weight and his next career step – Coventry Telegraph

Lose Weight Safely Comments Off on EXCLUSIVE: Dai Young on Wasps’ turnaround and future, losing weight and his next career step – Coventry Telegraph

Dai Young believes the future is bright' at Wasps and shared his delight with the continued turnaround in the club's form since his near-nine season tenure as director of rugby ended last month.

In his first full interview since parting company with the club he joined in 2011 and steered to within minutes of the Premiership title in 2017, the three-time British Lions tourist discussed short-term goals, which include recharging his batteries and getting fit and healthy before undertaking his next job - which might not necessarily be in rugby union.

The 52-year-olds departure from the Ricoh Arena club was officially confirmed in the build-up to Wasps 60-10 victory over Saracens, which Young was due to attend before an injury to eldest son Thomas in the team run prompted a return to his homeland to visit his parents.

A week later, he was 175 miles west of the Madejski Stadium as London Irish were defeated by the visiting Black and Golds. He was watching sons Lewis and Owen play for Ebbw Vale where they ground out a 6-6 draw at Carmarthen Quins.

It's been lovely spending a bit of time catching up with people that I always promise I am going to catch up with and never do, said Young. It allowed me to go home and watch my sons Owen and Lewis play, which I don't get to do that often. It's given me time to visit my parents. That's taken up my three weeks.

Since Youngs confirmed departure and under the guidance of interim head coach Lee Blackett, Wasps have recorded three successive bonus point victories, scoring 135 points along the way to rise to a season-high position of fifth.

For their former leader, its an unsurprising explosion of form. Wasps won two of their last three league games with Young in charge, including scintillating away successes at Bristol Bears and Worcester Warriors.

I am absolutely delighted for everyone at the club, said Young. I can't help but sit with a wry smile when I've seen these results because you tend to think, well 'I told you so'. It's something I've been saying constantly during the first part of the season.

"As the director of rugby working closely with the coaches, overseeing and observing sessions I could really see it starting to click. It's no shock to me that results have turned around, long may it continue.

A big well done to the coaches, to the players and to everybody at the club. I am absolutely thrilled, hopefully it will continue and it would be great if we can carry on and finish in the top six and, who knows, even sneak into the top four. To achieve top six would be one hell of an achievement.

It was a little over a year ago he revealed to CoventryLive in an exclusive interview that he was in a dark place when the club was in the grips of star player departure rumours and suffering a downward spiral of results. He said his hands were burned from putting out so many fires. Youngs routine as a director of rugby was all-encompassing at Wasps, a measure of how emotionally he is attached to the club.

With his previously unbroken 30-year career in professional rugby now at a temporary halt, the former Wales captain is taking time to focus on himself before his next career step. As a former dual-code international, having also appeared 14 times for his nation's rugby league side, there's a little more to him these days than he's comfortable with.

I am very much looking at a staged approach, he explained. I've done what I've done for the last three weeks, now I am getting back in the gym, getting myself fitter and lose a bit of weight. Spend a bit of time on me.

The director of rugby job is an all-consuming job, you can forget to look after yourself. I want to rest up as well and take a break from it and recharge my batteries.

Although it's only been three weeks, it has been completely different. I am enjoying the break and not being involved in rugby on a day-to-day basis, how long that will last, who knows?

"The next six weeks, I will sit down and think about what I want moving forward.

There is a clear desire to get back into the sport he loves. Having also coached the Barbarians on the international stage on a couple of occasions, it appears those skills are the ones he is keen to put to the test once more.

"In the last two seasons as director of rugby I've not done as much coaching as I'd normally do, I haven't enjoyed that, I don't think that's the best use of my time and experience," he said.

"The obvious way forward would be a director of rugby role, having spent 16 years as director of rugby at both Cardiff and Wasps.

"The last two years at Wasps I did not have a direct hands on coaching responsibility but an overseeing role. Id much rather be a director of rugby, head coach. Spending more hands on coaching time on the pitch.

I am not averse to just being a coach as well. I've got no egotistical thing about wanting to be in charge. I see my next job as being really important, I want to make sure it's something I enjoy."

Young steered Wasps north from London to Coventry, and like many of his staff who remained with the club, relocated to the Midlands with his wife April.

I love living in the area, I love the house, and would consider local rugby related employment he said.

But having lived in Manchester and Leeds he would not rule out working elsewhere for the right job in rugby.

"I don't really know what the future holds for me, but it's quite exciting and quite daunting as well when you haven't got anything mapped out for you.

Once a Wasp, always a Wasp, is the saying that has long since been attached to the famous old club. He is no longer the figurehead, the captain of the ship. Yet Young still has a steadfast belief in the clubs future, the squad he built and those who rescued the club from financial disaster.

I think the future is really bright and really exciting, said Young. You've got an owner, Derek Richardson, who saved the club, and has driven the club to the successes they've had and still has the same motivation and same drive to keep the club moving forward.

"That should never be forgotten or under-estimated.

On top of that, you've got a new chief executive, Stephen Vaughan, coming in with energy, enthusiasm and fresh ideas to take it forward.

There's fantastic, experienced hard working staff, and I've got a huge amount of appreciation for what they did for me. They are Wasps through and through and they are only going to keep working hard to be successful.

We've got a great squad, a mixture of youth and experience. Recently promoted academy players with a year more experience and development coupled with a strong group of experienced players that have been there for a long time, led by club captain Joe Launchbury.

"I said at the start of the year it would be a little bit of a transition year, but next year I feel it could be a really good year for us. I do think the future is bright, also going to a new training facility is exciting.

I think Wasps will start moving all the dark clouds that have been over us for the last 18 months and I think the sky is going to be a lot brighter. The future is going to be a lot more positive and Wasps are going to go from strength to strength and be a real force over the next couple of seasons.

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EXCLUSIVE: Dai Young on Wasps' turnaround and future, losing weight and his next career step - Coventry Telegraph

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