A tug of war appears to have ensued for the services of former All Blacks Sevens master coach Gordon Tietjens, with two countries rumoured to be in the final stages of his coaching appointment.
A source within the Kenyan Rugby Union has disclosed that they will formally announce Tietjens’ appointment as Kenya Sevens coach on Thursday night (NZT).
However, Tietjens has been seen meeting with Samoa Rugby Union and having coffee with former Manu Samoa coach Sami Leota.
Adding even more spice to the tussle, the Samoan Rugby Union has scheduled a formal announcement on Friday morning (NZT) and haven't confirmed or denied that the announcement involves the 60-year-old.
Former Manu Samoa coach Sami Leota with Gordon Tietjens in Samoa (Newshub)
The Kenyan Rugby Union has been in talks with Tietjens over the last week, a source from the governing body claiming that they sealed a deal for the Kiwi tactician on Tuesday evening.
The source also said that a deal was done-and-dusted and that there were only minor details to deal with before the announcement was made.
"They had a few issues to sort out with Tietjens and I guess everybody wanted to be happy since he comes from far," the source said.
"He is the best coach in the world and SportPesa, one of KRU’s sponsors, have indicated that they will be ready to pay for any coach."
It would be a coup for the Kenyan Rugby Union to secure Tietjens, the legendary coach guiding the All Blacks Sevens to 12 World Rugby Sevens Series titles and two World Cups before he stepped down as coach in August.
Newshub.
