It's often said in sport you should never go back but Tony Iro has done just that, electing to return to the Warriors as assistant coach.
Iro was confirmed yesterday as one of two new assistants under Andrew McFadden for the 2015 season, after the departure last week of both Ricky Henry and Adam Mogg. McFadden's other assistant is yet to be announced.
Iro will fulfil his Kiwis commitments - he's NZRL general manager of high performance as well as Kiwis team manager - for the upcoming Four Nations before returning to Mt Smart.
It's a significant move for Iro, who left the club in difficult circumstances at the end of the 2012 season. Having already been overlooked once in favour of Brian McClennan, he then watched as the club conducted a drawn-out version of Coaching Idol, before settling on the surprise choice of Matt Elliott.
Iro, who was backed by the players, had little choice but to leave after the board's bizarre decision. Interestingly, that was also probably the kiss of death for Elliott, who struggled from the start to relate to his squad - it might have been very different with the experience and knowledge of Iro in his corner.
