Phil Mack eyes next coaching challenge after leaving Seattle

Phil Mack has left Seattle. One of the most popular figures in the Seawolves since the team’s creation in 2018, the 34-year-old departs with two Major League Rugby Championship rings and three seasons of experience coaching the professional side.

The first two were unorthodox to say the least. Mack was initially recruited in a player-coach capacity but was meant to assist fellow Canadian international Tony Healy. The two had worked together the previous year, guiding the BC Bears to their first Canadian Rugby Championship crown in eight years.

Despite Healy’s credentials as a former professional player and national title-winning Head Coach, he was denied a visa and the team was left scrambling to come up with a solution in time for the inaugural campaign that was fast approaching. In the end Mack took on the lead role while still performing as the starting scrumhalf.

“It was never easy. The further that Tony’s visa application lingered, the more doubt there was that it was actually going to get through. The leadership group sat down and said ‘we’re two weeks out from the start of the season, do we just put our head down and do this as a group?’

“I think it was a really powerful thing for us as a team knowing that there was nobody else to blame… well I guess I would be the one, but I was still on the field with everyone. We all just got on with it, decided that this was how we were going to play and this is what we were going to do. There was no bickering about anything really.”

Under the circumstances, the team’s performance was remarkable. The Seawolves lost just twice in the 2018 regular season – both to Glendale – but saved their best for last. After defeating San Diego in the Semi Final they upset the Raptors at Torero Stadium to win the first ever MLR Shield Final.

“That’s definitely one of those moments that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. Just looking at the boys that really stepped up and led that year. It was very satisfying. Once we got in the locker room we all thought ‘holy crap’ that really just happened.”

 

 

The following season was nearly a case of déjà vu. Anton Moolman had been recruited to fill the Head Coach role but like Healy the South African also failed to secure a visa. Once again it seemed like Mack would have to step up, but former Women’s Eagles Sevens coach Richie Walker was hired just days ahead of the season opener against Glendale.

“There was some discussion [of Mack as Head Coach], but then I was probably the first one to say that what we did the year before could not be repeated. We needed to have some separation between players and coaches. So we started scouring and Richie was a great fit for us.

“He’s really laid back and allowed us to continue a lot of the stuff that we were already doing but with a lot more accountability from his part. The way the league was growing – it was getting better and better – that player-coach model was just not sustainable.”

With Walker as Head Coach, Mack continued as a player-coach with senior players Shalom Suniula, Riekert Hattingh, and Mat Turner also part of the leadership group. On the field Mack was part of a three-person halfback rotation as JP Smith and Ben Cima were recruited in the off-season.

Seattle finished 2nd on the table in the 2019 regular season and again delivered at the business end of the season. They had too much firepower for a difficult Toronto Arrows side in the Semi Final and then hit the road for San Diego. A last-gasp try gave the Seawolves their second consecutive title to the dismay of the partisan Legion crowd.

There was no time for rest in the off-season. A second World Cup campaign with Canada was on the cards. First there was a trip to Fiji at the end of August for the Pacific Nations Cup, then Tate Joseph Mack was born just days before the new father would board a plane for Japan.

 

 

Mack played two games for Canada at the tournament, starting against South Africa in what would be his 59th and final cap for his country. There was no announcement of retirement and the scrumhalf admits he considered playing on until an offer from Seattle came to become a full-time coach in 2020.

“I never actually closed the door. I was weighing the options and probably could have gone back and played another year, but I thought it wouldn’t be wise to play on and give up a coaching position. After the World Cup, the timing made it a little bit easier to make the decision to walk away.

“One of my coaches told me that coaching is a great replacement for playing, but it’s always going to be a replacement. It’s a different level of stress in terms of trying to stay focused. The pressure really is on to get everyone doing the right thing so you’re using the time most effectively.

“I think in MLR especially the teams that use their time the smartest are the most successful. The structure, some guys work day jobs… there’s a million hurdles that you have to try and navigate through to make sure that the team is ready to go at game time.”

With Walker returning to his native New Zealand, Kees Lensing was brought in from New York to take over as Head Coach. Mack would be his assistant with S&C expert Chris Tombs and analyst Phil Terrigno completing the coaching staff.

The two-time defending champions were hit with a series of injuries to start the 2020 campaign and struggled coming out of the gate. Just as it seemed like they were beginning to find some form, the world was swept up by the COVID-19 pandemic and the third MLR season was brought to a screeching halt.

Though the league voted unanimously to pay the players their entire salaries for the canceled games, not all coaches were afforded the same. Seattle’s staff were laid off a week after its suspension with the impression given they would be re-hired for 2021.

Two days ago Mack got the call from team owner Adrian Balfour explaining that while Lensing would be continuing on, there wasn’t enough budget to retain a full-time backs coach. The Seawolves will ironically revert to a player-coach role with Turner the man taking over from Mack.

“It was a bit of a shock, but it’s understandable. This pandemic is hitting everybody and money is tight all over the place.

“I’m very grateful for the opportunity I was given in Seattle. I want to thank those players that I worked with; the fans, especially, they were massive for us; and the ownership for taking the risk and trusting me with a big responsibility over the last three years.”

 

 

Seawolves President Shane Skinner thanked Mack in a release confirming Turner’s appointment.

“Phil has been a major contributor to our success to date and he will be missed by our entire organization. He is a fierce competitor, passionate teammate, and beloved friend to our rugby community. His tireless commitment has helped build the Seawolves into the world-class sports organization that we are today.”

So now it’s back to the drawing board for Mack. The recent time off has given him time to reflect while at home in Victoria with nine-month-old Tate and wife Becky. He has also been reviewing the direction of Thunder Rugby, a program created by Mack to promote rugby within the Indigenous community on Vancouver Island.

On his own part the next destination is uncertain. Given his considerable experience on the World Sevens Series as a player, an international coaching job in the shortened code seems a natural fit and Mack says that remains a long-term goal.

“That would be something to look at in the future. It’s quite a bit of a step. There is no more pressure than international rugby. I’m confident but I still think you need to sharpen your teeth for a few years before you can actually be successful at that level.”

For now Mack is keen to stay involved in MLR or a full-time role anywhere in North America. His Indigenous status means he does not require visa clearance to work in the USA. That could prove highly valuable as travel restrictions complicate the already stifling bureaucracy that prevented several MLR recruits from appearing this season.

In the meantime tributes pour in from Seattle and Canadian fans alike, a small thank you for the enormous contributions made to North American rugby over the last decade. This chapter in Mack’s career has ended but one gets the feeling this story has many more to come.