Danny Wilson leaves Harlequins to join Steve Tandy's Wales set-up

Danny Wilson has left his role as Harlequins head coach to join the Wales national coaching staff, the London club confirmed, leaving Harlequins without a permanent head coach less than two weeks before the start of the Premiership season.

Wilson, who had been seconded to Wales for their summer tour of Japan, will become an assistant coach with Wales with responsibility for the line-out and contact area. His final game in charge of Harlequins is set to be the Premiership Rugby Cup match against Newcastle Red Bulls on Friday.

Harlequins said the club has "already begun a thorough review process to determine next steps and further updates on this will follow imminently." In the short term, former No. 10 Nick Evans and the club’s existing coaching staff will take on increased responsibilities to prepare the squad for the domestic campaign. Harlequins have failed to qualify for the end-of-season play-offs in each of the last two seasons.

Wilson said the decision to leave was difficult and praised his time at Quins. "This has been a really tough decision for me to make as I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Quins," he said. "But the chance to join Wales and return to international rugby was simply too good an opportunity to turn down. Having the opportunity to experience international rugby again for the interim period with Wales this summer in Japan was a huge honour. I’m delighted to be able to return on a permanent basis and to work again with Steve and this exciting group of young players."

Steve Tandy, who officially began as Wales head coach on Sept. 1, made Wilson his first appointment. Tandy said he had worked with Wilson previously when both were with Scotland and at Glasgow Warriors. "He is an outstanding coach," Tandy said. "This is a really exciting time and I’m grateful to Danny for accepting the challenge to share in this experience. We can’t wait to get started together preparing for the autumn."

Wales ended an 18-match losing run in Test rugby during the summer tour in Japan, but Tandy and his new coaching team face a significant rebuilding task as the Welsh Rugby Union considers proposals to reduce the number of professional regional teams. Wales’ autumn schedule includes Tests against Argentina, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa.

Wilson brings previous Test and club experience, including time working in Scotland, to the Wales set-up. His move represents a return to international rugby after two seasons leading Harlequins, during which the club prioritised developing younger players.

There is also the possibility of further short-term or permanent coaching departures from Harlequins. Scrum coach Adam Jones has worked with Wales on loan from Quins in recent campaigns and could rejoin the national team in some capacity, Harlequins and Wales officials have indicated.

Former Leicester Tigers head coach Michael Cheika, who is currently available after leaving Leicester at the end of last season, has been mentioned as a possible candidate for the Harlequins vacancy, though the club has not announced any preferred successors.

Harlequins face the immediate challenge of settling a coaching structure and maintaining pre-season preparations as the Premiership gets under way. The club said it will provide further updates on its review of the head coach position "imminently."