Waratahs head coach to depart NSW franchise after two disappointing seasons
Waratahs head coach Dan McKellar will part ways with the NSW team with one year left on his contract after a second poor season led to a drastic change at the Rugby Australia-owned team.
McKellar was forced to take the helm of the Waratahs board last week to explain the just-concluded Super Rugby Pacific season in which the NSW team once again failed to qualify for the six-team play-offs.
The Waratahs have won just five of 14 games, one less than in McKellar’s first season in 2025. McKellar, a former Brumbies head coach and Wallabies assistant coach, arrived at the Waratahs at the end of 2024 with the hope that he could turn around the consistently underperforming franchise.
But two disappointing seasons followed and McKellar’s continued future at the club has come under scrutiny in recent weeks.
In the face of mixed player feedback about the McKellar regime, the Waratahs and Rugby Australia have conducted a review of the season and his future at the club.
McKellar, who said he was “under contract” after the Waratahs lost to the Force in the last round and planned to stay with the team through 2027, decided to leave the Tahs at the weekend.
An announcement is expected to be made on Monday.
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Iain Payten is senior sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect with: X or email.
