Steve Tandy is being linked with the head coach job at the Waratahs after the exit of Daryl Gibson.
But the position in Sydney is not the only one the former Ospreys team boss is being associated with.
Tandy is also said to be mulling over interest from Japan, where a head coach job is said to be a possibility, and there are even suggestions he could be in the sights of at least one club in the Gallagher Premiership.
It underlines how quickly things can change in rugby.
This time a year ago, Tandy had no full-time position, having parted company with the Ospreys after a six-year stint as head coach.
But Tandy resurfaced in Australia as the defence coach at the Waratahs and received rave reviews for his work after the famous blue shirts defeated the Crusaders earlier in the season. They haven’t kicked on as a team since, not helped by the Israel Folau saga, but the ‘Tahs had the best tackle success rate in Super Rugby (86.7 percent) with Tandy’s input deemed to have been important.
The espn website suggested his name might be among options for the New South Wales-based outfit to explore, while Waratahs chief executive Andrew Hore has long felt Tandy to be a top coach in the making, the pair having worked together at the Ospreys.
But nothing is settled — far from it. Fellow Waratahs assistant coach Chris Whitaker has also been touted for the job, but there is speculation that both he and Tandy may lack the high-level experience to head up a Super Rugby side.
There are suggestions the ‘Tahs could face a loss of key players after the World Cup, with the club having already waved goodbye to stalwarts Sekope Kepu and Nick Phipps and question marks over the plans of a number of others, including Kurtley Beale and Bernard Foley.
But there is young talent coming through: 11 members of the Junior Wallabies squad that reached the World Rugby U20 Championship final this month were from the Waratahs. It will take time for them to fully emerge on the senior scene, however.
Whatever, Tandy has options.
When he headed to Australia last year he was bucking the trend of coaches travelling from the south to the north for jobs.
He is a friend of Gibson and doubtless would have wanted his mate to stay at the Waratahs. Gibson has since been linked to Bath, and if he did resurface in the west of England some are speculating he could seek to renew his tie with Tandy.
A switch to Japan? That would potentially be lucrative.
Tandy has thinking to do.
