No deal yet, but Everitt wants to stay at Edinburgh

Former Sharks head coach Sean Everitt joined Edinburgh in 2023

Head coach Sean Everitt says he would like to remain with Edinburgh to "reap the rewards" after enduring "some pain" to develop his side.

The South African's contract expires at the end of the coming season and, speaking to the BBC's Scotland Rugby Podcast, Everitt confirmed he has yet to open negotiations with Scottish Rugby about extending his deal.

After a sticky start to last season during which many questioned if he should remain in his role, Everitt guided Edinburgh to the quarter-finals of the United Rugby Championship and the semi-finals of the Challenge Cup.

"Staying in Edinburgh and building on what we've created at the moment would be a great opportunity to try and achieve something special within our club," Everitt said.

"When you're bringing youngsters through and there's a new energy in the team and you're creating new leadership, you would want to see the finished product, or reap the rewards of some of the pain that you might go through developing these players.

"So it would definitely be a consideration of mine to stay in Edinburgh."

With Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend and Glasgow Warriors' Franco Smith both recently signing new deals to commit their future to Scottish Rugby, continuity seems to be the key strategy for the union moving forward.

Everitt says his future will ideally be sorted out before the calendar year is out to give everyone at Edinburgh some clarity, but he says any off-field uncertainty does not excuse on-field performance.

"We would have to make a decision by the end of the year," he said.

"I think, from a performance point of view, it would be ideal if they did have stability early on, but I think everyone understands where the game is and how the game works.

"At the end of the day, it shouldn't affect what I do in June or July, or what Scottish Rugby decides to do for me in June and July, It shouldn't affect the team in October.

"We focus on the job that we have from week to week to try and get results on the weekend, or to perform to the best of our ability. That's what you need to focus on."