THE worse-kept secret in international rugby is now official after Dave Rennie, the Glasgow Warriors head coach, was last night unveiled as the new man to take charge of Australia. Leaks in Sydney had made it clear he was the man the Wallabies wanted and now they have landed their prime target on a four-year deal until the end of the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

Since this has been brewing for weeks, Rennie has already been able to promise Glasgow fans he will stay to the end of his contract, which expires at the end of this season. That does not affect his new job since Australia don't play a Test until two weeks after the Guinness PRO14 final, the last game Glasgow could possibly play this campaign.

The lengthy lead-in has also allowed the Scottish Rugby Union, who own Glasgow, to work on getting his replacement on board. It is understood the new man has agreed a deal and an announcement is imminent.

In a prepared statement, Mark Dodson, the SRU chief executive who appointed Rennie in 2017 paid tribute to the work he had done at Glasgow, who reached the Heineken Champions Cup quarter finals and PRO14 final last season, his second in charge.

“He’s led a talented playing and coaching group with passion and encouraged the team to express themselves and play positive rugby throughout," Dodson said.

“He enhanced the strong, positive culture at Scotstoun and pushed the team to achieve significant results, playing some outstanding rugby on the way. He has conducted himself throughout with great professionalism and I know he will want to sign off his time in Glasgow with some silverware.”