It has not been a bad year for the Premier League. An average viewership record in Round 13, a record-breaking festive period for attendance, two Champions Cup semi-finalists, and in terms of matches won, only Bristol could feel aggrieved that they missed out on a place in the top four. And if attempts get you out of bed in the morning, then you’ve caught a lot of worms all season.
But if it’s the small stuff and confrontation that you have a particular fondness for, you might want more. Richard Cockerill, as head coach of Georgia and its Black Lion franchise – and a former tenacious hooker himself – is certain of that belief. Cockerill was Leicester’s forwards coach and then director of rugby for 12 years and was involved in all but two trophies of the Tigers’ professional era.
Before heading to Edinburgh, Toulon, Montpellier and England – as assistant to both Eddie Jones and Steve Borthwick – Cockerill became synonymous with Leicester’s aggressive approach. He was there for all the leftovers from the East Midlands derby; there for Manu Tuilagi’s punch on Chris Ashton; there for Dylan Hartley’s send-off to Twickenham; and there for Salesi Ma’afu’s haymaker on Tom Youngs. These types of days are less common these days in the age of hyper-professionalism; and they may never come back.
“It’s a byproduct of the modern game,” Cockerill, 53, told Telegraph Sport. “People move clubs more often. It’s a professional game, a job. I am a professional coach. Its my job. When I coached Leicester, as a Leicester man there was a big rivalry with Toulon – and then you coach them. And that then became the most important thing. For players, could anyone have imagined Chris Ashton playing for Leicester? Or Mike Brown? I’m from Coventry, but when I first came to Leicester, when we played Northampton, Dean Richards came in and said, ‘We hate Northampton, so you’ll hate Northampton.’ ‘OK.’ You just couldn’t lose to them.
‘When I coached Leicester you just couldn’t… you would hide at home for a week if you lost to Saints. The semi-final in which Manu ‘handled’ Ashton – two yellow cards – that intensity where there is real tension. Who is going to win? Who will strike the first blow? And the number of attempts didn’t matter. All the crowd cared about was how dedicated the team was.
“Nowadays we talk about pressure, about not putting pressure on players to win. And it’s all about the ‘process’. I’ll tell you what, when we played Northampton it was all about the process. You just had to win. “I don’t care what you do, guys, but you just can’t lose this game. We can’t lose.’ You have to deal with that pressure because that’s the game. You’re playing at a sold out Welford Road. You can’t lose! F—, how embarrassing!
“I’m not sure we have that kind of anticipation and rivalry anymore in the Premier League. Whether it’s Saints/Leicester or Bath/Gloucester, it’s just different. That was ten years ago.”
‘There is a hunger for rugby in Georgia’
Now Cockerill has found a home away from home in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, after being appointed head coach of Lelos and its Black Lion franchise in January. In many ways, thanks to the Georgians’ confrontational reputation and Cockerill’s combative modus operandi, there is every chance of it being a match made in Heaven, with the first contact between the two sides having been made by Mamuka Gorgodze as he and Cockerill were visiting. Toulon.
As with everything Cockerill does, there is nothing half-hearted about the Georgian move. To use football terminology, he has stepped up on two legs, moved to Tbilisi and taken on the responsibility of turning Georgia from a side that treads water – between the traditional ‘tier one’ and ‘tier two’ brackets – to a side that might one day exist. walk on it. What he needs for that, though, are opportunities – not necessarily for Georgia, but more on a regular basis for Black Lion.
“The thing is, when I first discussed living in Tbilisi with the union, I was a bit hesitant, but then you go and visit… it’s a great city,” says Cockerill. “Very cosmopolitan, very European. Lots of history – for all kinds of reasons. If that were a URC or Six/Seven Nations destination, people would be surprised at what Georgia is all about. A great city, great facilities, great stadiums and they love their rugby.
“We played Clermont Auvergne in the Challenge Cup this season and 17,000 people came to watch. That’s more than many Premier League teams get. There is enthusiasm for it, especially among the public. We have the stadiums – and it’s a great place to visit. Wine, food, hospitality; it’s a great place. We have to back that up on the pitch, but Italy competed in the Six Nations in 2000 and then the United Rugby Championship in 2010; we’d like to think we’re a little further ahead of Italy when they entered those championships.
“But where do we go from here? The Six Nations and the Southern Hemisphere with Japan and Fiji in the Nations Cup, but where does that leave Georgia?
“One of the things we don’t have with Black Lion, the players from Georgia playing for our home team, is enough competition. They play in the REC [second tier Six Nations]then there are still four months until the summer tour.
“Tests are not the level that matters for us. We get good opposition in the summer and fall because teams want to play against us. We are good competition and it is a good mix of ‘level one’ and two. REC is a competition, with respect, that we are probably too good for. For us it’s a lose-lose situation: if we win, it’s what everyone expected; If we don’t, it will be a disaster.
“The plan for us is to keep improving as a club team and try to get into the URC – that ball is in motion.”
Regarding the possible autumn test against Wales, Cockerill added: “There was an opportunity to play Wales outside the window, which doesn’t make sense for us to play only with our domestic players. The reality is that our best players play in France. 50 percent of our team plays in France. I don’t think there is any point in playing Wales with only 50 percent of our best team.”
Speaking about Cockerill’s time in France – as well as Toulon, he started this season as coach of Montpellier, who are at risk of relegation to the ProD2, before being sacked – the gritty hooker believes that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
“I can’t say too much, but if you take the job, you have to do the job,” Cockerill said. “Whatever the circumstances – and there have been some tough ones – if you do your job and don’t win, you will be under pressure. I took the job, we didn’t win any games and I got fired.
“That’s the nature of the business. I am always someone who takes responsibility for my own actions. The reality is that I thought I could do the job when they offered it to me – and clearly I couldn’t. It was probably the first time. It was a punishing experience, not what you want, but it is what it is. That’s the game. I’ve had a lot of success. Apart from Montpellier, when I’m working on environments I’ve always improved them. Montpellier just wasn’t meant to be. You have to take it on the chin, move on and go again.
Just as he would have done in one of those East Midlands derbies.