Heyneke Meyer officially tendered his resignation as Stade Francais director of rugby and coach after it was reported that he had been sacked.
The former Springbok coach joined Stade in 2018, with the club finishing eighth in his first season in charge, six points from the French Top 14 playoff places.
However, the team has failed to progress in his second season in charge and currently sit bottom of the table with two wins from nine games.
Stade’s loss to local rivals Racing 92 last weekend led to speculation that Meyer would be removed from his role, but there was confusion as to whether he had been fired or resigned.
‘It has always been my intention to do what is best for this great club. With this in mind I hereby offer my resignation as Sports Director and coach of Stade Francais,’ Meyer said in a statement.
‘It has been an honour to coach the club. I have had a great experience coaching Stade Français and I have loved my time in Paris. I would like to thank Dr Wild, who is quite simply, a wonderful man to work for and I am grateful for the opportunity and all the support he gave me. I would like to thank the players and my support staff. I will always be a supporter of Stade Français Paris.’
The news broke just a week after Stade owner Hans-Peter Wild has publicly backed Meyer, despite admitting he had troubles communicating with the former Vodacom Bulls coach.
It is yet to be officially confirmed whether Meyer’s assistants, including scrum coach Pieter de Villiers, defence coach John McFarland and backline coach Ricardo Loubscher will also leave the club.
Photo: Thomas Samson /AFP
