Booth confirms London Irish departure
Published 8 May 2012 14:30
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LONDON Irish have confirmed that head coach Toby Booth is leaving the club to join Bath.
As reported earlier today, Booth will be part of a new coaching set-up at Bath and will take with him Neal Hatley from Exiles.
Justin Bishop is also leaving Irish, but he is yet to announce his next move.
And with Mike Catt joining the England coaching team, Exiles will now look to put together a whole new back room set-up under director of rugby Brian Smith.
For Booth, the decision to leave brings to an end a 10-year spell at the club and he said it was tough to move on.
"After 10 years London Irish will always be part of me and the decision to leave was not taken lightly, especially after the fantastic support shown to me by the fans throughout my time here," he commented.
"Moving is going to be a big change but I feel now is the right time for a fresh challenge. I have worked with fantastic players and coaches over the years and I would also like to thank everyone who has supported me. I wish London Irish the very best of luck for the future."
Andy Martin, London Irish's chief executive, added: "Toby, Justin and Neal have been at the heart of London Irish for many years and we are all extremely proud of their achievements.
"Toby has led the team through one of its most successful ever periods and they have all been instrumental in recruiting and developing some of the club's most outstanding talent.
"We are extremely sad that they are leaving, however, we understand the lure of career progression and so we sincerely thank them for their unfaltering commitment to London Irish and wish them all the very best of luck in their new endeavours.
"Our plans for next season are shaping up well. We have made some very strong player signings over the last few weeks to add to our existing talent and our priority now is to ensure that we have an equally strong back room set up under Brian Smith. Those wheels are already very much in motion and we will make further announcements as soon as possible."
This article appeared in Reading Chronicle 08 May 12
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