Vern Cotter: Former Scotland boss lands new head coach role in New Zealand

Former Scotland boss Vern Cotter has been appointed the new head coach of The Blues.

Vern Cotter has joined The Blues following his spell as Fiji head coach.

The 61-year-old, who was Scotland’s head coach between 2014 and 2017, has been given a two-year contract with the New Zealand outfit ahead of the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season. He begins work in Auckland this week and will be assisted by Jason O’Halloran, who was also his No 2 while working at BT Murrayfied.

“I would like to extend my thanks to the entire Blues organisation for putting their trust in me,” Cotter said. “I’ve watched this club thrive in recent years and I’m excited by the challenge of taking them forward and building on what is a very strong base. It’s great to have Jason joining me at the Blues. Since our time in Scotland we’ve remained firm friends and often pick up the phone to discuss current trends in the game – I know he’ll add real value to an already strong coaching team.”

Cotter will work in his homeland for the first time since 2006, when he was a coach at The Crusaders. He spent eight largely successful years in charge of French outfit Clermont Auvergne before taking the reins at Scotland. He left in 2017 and worked at Montpellier until 2019, returning to international rugby in 2020 as Fiji’s head coach for nearly three years before stepping down due to personal reasons.

The Blues feel they have made a significant coup in landing Cotter. “We’ve been in communication with Vern for a while now and what shone through in our conversations was his desire to drive the club forward while building on the strong culture we’ve developed at the Blues over the last few years,” said their chairman Don Mackinnon. “He’s an experienced and driven coach, has a history of success and I believe is the right fit for the role.

“Vern and Jason have proven they work well together, and we believe the pair will provide some fresh thinking and energy to take the club forward. We’re really happy with our coaching mix for 2024 and beyond and believe Vern is the right man to set the direction for our coaching group and continue the development of some excellent younger coaches.”