Dai Young ends long spell in charge if Wasps

Dai Young has ended his long spell in charge of English Premiership side Wasps a week after he said he was "stepping back" from taking charge of the first team. The 52-year-old former Wales and British & Irish Lion prop has been in charge since 2011 but little has gone right since the club lost to Exeter in the 2017 Premiership final. On Tuesday Young said he was proud of the young players he had helped bring along but he felt his time had run its course. "I am extremely proud of my record during my time at Wasps and was extremely honoured to receive the Director of Rugby of the Season award in 2017," he said in a club statement. "It will be tough to leave a club and group of people that has meant so much to me over the past decade, but I feel this is the right time for both the club and for myself." Young, who will still be a regular attendee at Wasps games as his son, Welsh international back row forward Thomas, is in the squad, was complimented by chairman Derek Richardson for supporting the not universally popular move from Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, to Coventry in 2014. Stephen Vaughan, Wasps Chief Executive (Sport), paid him a handsome tribute but added a change was needed. "Nine years is a long time at one club in professional sport and Dai has done a wonderful job," said Vaughan. "After extensive conversations, we've agreed that it's the right time for a change." Young's position had become increasingly untenable as the club suffered an alarming loss of form and have won just 13 of their last 47 fixtures. One of the factors in the tailing off of their results was a haemorrhaging of talent. Experienced players like Danny Cipriani and James Haskell along with England star Elliott Daly and foreign imports Willie Le Roux and Kurtley Beale all left in recent years. Young has been replaced by attack and backs coach Lee Blackett, who has been part of Young's backroom staff since arriving from Rotherham Titans in 2015. However, he may not be the long-term choice. "Our focus now is to ensure we have a plan in place to take the club forward," said Vaughan. "It's important we take the time to make the right decisions as we enter a new era for the Club." Dai Young is to step down as Wasps director of rugby after a largely successful nine year spell in the job