# 2025 New South Wales Waratahs season

The 2025 New South Wales Waratahs season is their 29th and current season in the Super Rugby since entering the professional era in 1996. Although the pre-season began in 2024 with a tour to Japan, the domestic season began in February 2025.

## Squad and personnel
### Coaching personnel

In May 2024 the New South Wales Rugby Union (NSWRU) confirmed that New South Wales Waratahs head coach since 2021, Darren Coleman, would be released at the conclusion of the 2024 season. At the time of the announcement Coleman's injury-plagued Waratahs had won just two matches from twelve, and sat bottom of the ladder. At the end of the 2023 season the Waratahs had finished sixth on the seasonal ladder, as they did the previous season, and were knocked out of the Finals in the Quarter-finals stage. Coleman stated to the The Sydney Morning Herald immediately following the season that although he loved the job, he did not feel great, stating: “I firmly believe we are trending in the right way... We haven't spoken about an extension, and nor would I expect them to come to me, given the season we just had. I'll keep my head down, work hard, get results next year and hopefully stay on if they want me. If not, I get it, you’ve got to win and win championships to keep the job.” When Coleman was announced as the new head coach on a three-year deal in July 2021 he was reported to be one of four final candidates vying for the position, which included Australia women's sevens coach John Manenti; Western Force assistant and former Fiji head coach John McKee; and Cardiff head coach John Mulvihill. Under Coleman's tenure (2022–2024) the Waratahs obtained a 36% win ratio.
Following the announcement that Coleman's contract would not be extended, The Sydney Morning Herald cited Michael Cheika, Nathan Grey, Stephen Hoiles and John Manenti as potential front-runners for the role, and published an article focused specifically on National Rugby League-linked, former Waratahs coach Michael Cheika. Later that same day (21 May 2024), the same publication gave readers a poll of six candidates, asking: “Who should be the next Waratahs coach?” Michael Cheika was polled the highest at 39%, with almost 4,000 votes cast. The following month they published an article discussing four candidates with high-level experience: Nathan Grey, Andy Friend, Michael Cheika and Kevin Foote. In late June, following expressions of interest from the Waratahs, former Australia and England attack coach Scott Wisemantel was put forward as a potential candidate, according to confidential sources. Finally on 3 July 2024 it was confirmed that the new coach of the Waratahs was Dan McKellar. McKellar signed on a three-year deal, and was immediately considered the front-runner for the job upon news of his sacking and replacement for Michael Cheika as head coach of English club Leicester Tigers just two weeks earlier. McKellar was joined by former Fiji coach Simon Raiwalui as Director of Performance alongside England international veteran and former Ireland attack coach Mike Catt. All three would serve as part of the teams high-performance staff.
Coaching personnel :
| Position | Coach |
| Head Coach | Dan McKellar |
| Assistant Coach | Mike Catt |
| Assistant Coach | Dan Palmer |
| Assistant Coach | Lachlan McCaffrey |
| Director of Performance | Simon Raiwalui |

### Squad

After a very active off-season with transfers, the Waratahs announced their pre-season squad to tour Japan in November 2024 with new coach Dan McKellar. The squad included a sizeable youth contingent and various new signings. Only one player was signed in 2025, with the earliest signing for the 2025 season being "dual code" international Joseph Sua'ali'i in March 2023.
The Waratahs' squad for the 2025 Super Rugby Pacific season was announced on 12 November 2024.

#### Senior squad

| Waratahs senior squad |
| Props Isaac Aedo Kailea Brad Amituanai Siosifa Amone Jack Barrett Angus Bell Daniel Botha Adrian Brown Tom Lambert Taniela Tupou Hookers Ethan Dobbins Julian Heaven Dave Porecki Mahe Vailanu Locks Ale Aho Miles Amatosero Ben Grant Clem Halaholo Felix Kalapu Mesu Kunavula Hugh Sinclair Angelo Smith | Loose forwards Jamie Adamson Charlie Gamble Langi Gleeson Fergus Lee-Warner Rob Leota Leafi Talataina$^{DEV}$ Scrum-halves Jake Gordon Jack Grant Teddy Wilson Fly-halves Jack Bowen Lawson Creighton Tane Edmed | Centres Lalakai Foketi Henry O'Donnell Joseph Sua'ali'i Joey Walton Outside backs James Hendren Max Jorgensen Andrew Kellaway Darby Lancaster Triston Reilly |
| (cc) denotes team co-captains, Bold denotes internationally capped, $^{DEV}$ denotes a development/academy squad squad player, $^{ST}$ denotes a short-term signing, denotes a player ruled out for the season with injury. |

#### Academy squad

| Waratahs academy squad |
| Props Will Goddard Nate Tiitii Hookers Bryn Edwards Oniti Finau Locks Eamon Doyle Aden Ekanayake | Loose forwards Ben Di Staso Austin Durbidge Scrum-halves Billy Dickens Hwi Sharples Fly-halves Joe Dillon | Centres Zach Fittler Jackson Ropata Outside backs Archie Saunders |
| Bold denotes internationally capped at youth level. |

## Season results
### Pre-season

Waratahs score shown first; only non-Australian teams with flag displayed.
2025 Pre-season results :
| Date | Venue | Team | Score | Result (Margin) |
| Friday, 29 November (2024) | Edogawa Stadium, Edogawa, Tokyo (Japan) | Kubota Spears | 43–17 | Won (26 points) |
| Saturday, 25 January | Eric Tweedale Stadium, Merrylands, New South Wales | New South Wales Pacifica | 73–7 | Won (66 points) |
| Saturday, 1 February | Bowral Rugby Club, Burradoo, New South Wales | ACT Brumbies | 36–36 | Draw |

### Summary and fixtures

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| Ground | H | — | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | — | A | H | H | A | A |
| Result | W | — | W | W | L | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Position | 5 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 5 | | | | | | | | | | | |
Waratahs score shown first; only non-Australian teams with flag displayed.
2025 Super Rugby season :
| Rnd. | Date | Venue | Team | Score | Result (Margin) | Attendance | Pos. | Ref. |
| 1 | Friday, 14 February | Sydney Football Stadium, Moore Park (Sydney) | Highlanders | 37–36 | Won (1 point) | 16,034 | 5th | |
| 2 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | 6th | — |
| 3 | Friday, 28 February | Sydney Football Stadium, Moore Park (Sydney) | Fijian Drua | 29–24 | Won (5 points) | 16,150 | 5th | |
| 4 | Saturday, 8 March | Sydney Football Stadium, Moore Park (Sydney) | Western Force | 34–10 | Won (24 points) | 11,000 | 2nd | |
| 5 | Saturday, 15 March | Lang Park, Milton (Brisbane) | Queensland Reds | 15–35 | Lost (20 points) | 20,072 | 5th | |
| 6 | Saturday, 22 March | Sydney Football Stadium, Moore Park (Sydney) | ACT Brumbies | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| 7 | Friday, 28 March | Wellington Regional Stadium, Pipitea (Wellington) | Hurricanes | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| 8 | Saturday, 5 April | North Harbour Stadium, Albany (Auckland) | Moana Pasifika | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| 9 | Friday, 11 April | Sydney Football Stadium, Moore Park (Sydney) | Chiefs | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| 10 | Saturday, 19 April | Churchill Park, Lautoka | Fijian Drua | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| 11 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | |
| 12 | Saturday, 3 April | Canberra Stadium, Bruce (Canberra) | ACT Brumbies | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| 13 | Friday, 9 May | Sydney Football Stadium, Moore Park (Sydney) | Queensland Reds | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| 14 | Friday, 16 May | Sydney Football Stadium, Moore Park (Sydney) | Crusaders | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| 15 | Saturday, 24 May | Perth Rectangular Stadium, Perth | Western Force | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
| 16 | Saturday, 31 May | Eden Park, Kingsland (Auckland) | Blues | — | TBD | TBD | TBD | |

### Season standings

2025 Super Rugby Pacific standings :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TA | TB | LB | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Chiefs | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 179 | 131 | +48 | 24 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 18 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 2 | Crusaders | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 155 | 126 | +29 | 24 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 14 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 3 | Reds | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 138 | 118 | +20 | 20 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 14 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 4 | Brumbies | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 171 | 167 | +4 | 26 | 22 | 1 | 1 | 14 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 5 | Waratahs | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 115 | 105 | +10 | 17 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 13 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 6 | Highlanders | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 114 | 107 | +7 | 14 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 10 | Advance to Quarter-finals |
| 7 | Hurricanes | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 143 | 158 | −15 | 19 | 23 | 0 | 1 | 9 | |
| 8 | Force | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 157 | 203 | −46 | 21 | 31 | 0 | 1 | 9 | |
| 9 | Blues | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 119 | 136 | −17 | 18 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 7 | |
| 10 | Drua | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 139 | 165 | −26 | 19 | 26 | 0 | 3 | 7 | |
| 11 | Moana Pasifika | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 149 | 163 | −14 | 22 | 23 | 0 | 2 | 6 | |

### British & Irish Lions tour

Waratahs score shown first.
2025 British & Irish Lions tour :
| Date | Venue | Team | Score | Result (Margin) | Ref. |
| Saturday, 5 July | Sydney Football Stadium, Moore Park (Sydney) | British and Irish Lions | TBD | TBD | |

## Statistics

    As of 17 March 2025.
Top point-scorers :
| Pos. | Player | Position | Tries | Con. | Pen. | Drop. | Points |
| 1 | Tane Edmed | Fly-half | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 21 |
| 2 | Max Jorgensen | Wing | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| 2 | Langi Gleeson | Flanker | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| 4 | Siosifa Amone | Prop | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 4 | Dave Porecki | Hooker | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 4 | Rob Leota | Flanker | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 7 | Penalty try | Penalty try | Penalty try | Penalty try | Penalty try | Penalty try | 7 |
| 8 | Andrew Kellaway | Outside back | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 8 | Triston Reilly | Outside back | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 8 | Lawson Creighton | Fly-half | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| 8 | Darby Lancaster | Outside back | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 8 | Felix Kalapu | Lock | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 13 | Jack Bowen | Fly-half | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Top try-scorers :
| Pos. | Player | Position | Tries |
| 1 | Max Jorgensen | Outside back | 3 |
| 1 | Langi Gleeson | Flanker | 3 |
| 3 | Siosifa Amone | Prop | 2 |
| 3 | Dave Porecki | Hooker | 2 |
| 3 | Rob Leota | Flanker | 2 |
| 4 | Andrew Kellaway | Outside back | 1 |
| 4 | Triston Reilly | Outside back | 1 |
| 4 | Darby Lancaster | Outside back | 1 |
| 4 | Felix Kalapu | Lock | 1 |
| 1 ||