What was this deal being offered 2 years ago?
Boards are gutless
They should have kept him until the WADA business is over. He was the shield in front of the players, he took the brunt of the abuse and was the excuse for every distracted player playing badly. Now it'll be open season on the lot of them.
No one decent is going to take a coaching job either, knowing half their team could be suspended at any moment. They'll end up with someone desperate for an opportunity.
The players aren't going to suddenly feel released with Hird gone, it's just another reminder that they could all be out of a job in a few months.
The winner here is James Hird. He can take his sack of money back to his big house where he won't have to worry about any of it.