MUNSTER Rugby have announced the appointment of New Zealander Martyn Vercoe as the province’s new Team Manager ahead of the 2025/26 season.
He will join the province next month subject to being granted a valid work permit.
He will be taking over from Niall O’Donovan having previously worked with incoming Head Coach Clayton McMillan, Alex Nankivell and John Ryan at the Gallagher Chiefs..
Vercoe is the current Team Manager and Head of Teams at Super Rugby side Gallagher Chiefs and Team Manager for the All Blacks XV.
He has been an experienced team manager in a number of environments over the past 12 years.
The New Zealander was manager of the Kiwi Under-20s side from 2016 to 2021, winning the Under-20s World Cup in 2017 with a 64-17 win against England in the final.
His U-20s team consisted of now senior internationals such as Tupou Vaa’i, Caleb Clarke and Will Jordan.
He also managed New Zealand National Provincial Championship side Tasman Makos from 2013 to 2020, taking them to three finals in his first five years before winning back to back titles in his last two seasons with the club.
Vercoe was also a Personal Development Manager and Commercial Manager at Tasman Rugby, and Head of Faculty at Marlborough Boys’ College in New Zealand prior to his management career.
He will have big boots to fill as he steps into the void left by the beloved Niall O’Donovan who has been working with the province for 28 years.
Along with his 28 years as a coach and manager with Munster and Irish Rugby, he also represented the province as a player in the 1980s.
O’Donovan joined Munster Rugby in 1997 as an assistant coach and reached two European Cup finals during his tenure in 2000 and 2002.
He left the province to become Ireland’s forward’s coach in 2002 but returned in 2010 as Munster A Team Manager.
The Shannon man coached the likes of Peter O’Mahony, Dave Kilcoyne, John Ryan and Stephen Archer in his time with the Munster A, winning the British and Irish Cup in 2012.
Following the cup win, ‘Niallo’ moved into the team manager role he is now leaving.
He has overseen defining moments such as the move to a single training base in the High Performance Centre in UL in 2016, and enjoying the province’s first trophy success in 12 years when winning the URC title in 2023.
The 68-year-old had an impressive cricket career before moving into rugby[/caption]
