NSW Waratahs coach Darren Coleman took a few extra moments to sink in the mark he will leave at the club as his time as coach came to an end on Friday night.
Coleman's Waratahs nearly delivered the dream ending for his tenure, fighting back from 19-0 down before falling to a late Tom Lynagh penalty 27-26 to the Reds.
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The 12,076 in attendance were treated to a thriller as young half Jack Bowen engineered the comeback, only for his Queensland counterpart to deliver the decisive blow with six minutes to go.
Coleman sat in the press conference post-match with son Jake and captain Jake Gordon reflecting on what it meant for the former development officer from the mid-north coast to bring belief back into the Waratahs faithful.
“Yeah, it was pretty cool. Just never know if you’re going to do that again. There’s so many good people there," Coleman said post-match.
“I thought for a dead rubber where we’re running last, there’s 10,000+ people there and we we started playing some good footy they really got behind us.
“It sort of makes you regret what we didn’t, or what we couldn’t achieve because I just genuinely feel Sydney is waiting for this team to do well. Unfortunately, I couldn’t deliver it but I really hope the next bloke does because they’ll get that joint pumping.
“I’d like to think I added a personal or human touch to it and connected with people. I’m a government school boy from Southwest Rocks so no real Rugby playing pedigree. Hopefully, it triggered with a few people that Rugby is a game for all.”
Coleman inherited a team coming off a winless season and instantly built belief, defining his legacy as a 'Crusaders crusher' of sorts with a famous win at Leichhardt Oval in 2022, backed up by two wins this season, ironically the only two of 2024.
The ambitions of turning the Waratahs into the premier side in Australia fell short despite two straight top-half finishes, eager to see what the next person could bring to the role.
“You definitely want them to care about the state and the sport in NSW and Australia. We’ve copped a rough trot of it over the last few years," Coleman said on the qualities the next person needs.
“Maybe where I went wrong at different times was probably caring too much on the bigger picture and not enough on the team and getting results.
“I think first and foremost he’s got to get the list and the roster set up how he wants and we’re all going to be rooting for him to get winning."
Coleman lives for nights like Friday: riding the highs and lows of a coach so it's no surprise that he's already eyeing his next move.
“I think I came in at 51, I’m 71 now. She’s a wild old ride in the coaches' box but I’m already thinking about my next gig to be able to do it again," he said and laughed.
“I’ve been doing it for 20-something years now where you just live every weekend for a win or loss and something you can build for. I just couldn’t see myself doing anything different like this. As s*** as it got at some times, I can’t wait to see the next group and do it again.”
Coleman will leave a legacy beyond results simply through his larger-than-life personality and care for the game and the people around him.
As his final post-match press conference drew to a close, Coleman reserved praise for his assistants around him who have been with them every step of the journey.
“What Jason Gilmore, Pauliasi Taumoepeau and Chris Whittaker have done, they’re the brains of the operation," began his final statement as coach.
“Their work ethic is incredible, their positivity to stay at the task when times are tough, they’re three of the best, they’re all world-class.
"I reckon Australian Rugby and professional Rugby, they’ll have great careers."
All class, until the very end.
