At the heel of the hunt, no one can accuse Alan Gaffney of disloyalty over his decision to pack up his things and head back to Australia, given the lure of being assistant/backs specialist coach to Eddie Jones in the Australian set-up.

Aside from promising plenty of surf and sunshine, it was the only concrete offer on the table for him and carries with it the prestige of working for his native Wallabies. The backs aren't too bad either.

No such firm offer was put in writing to him by Munster or by the IRFU, and with the ides of March beckoning and his current contract expiring in less than three months, he had little choice. Had he been signed up a couple of months ago or more, it wouldn't have become an issue, for he is one of the most honourable men you could meet and would almost certainly have stayed put. Along with a lingering sense of unfinished business, Munster have that kind of affect on people.

What makes the saga a little unedifying is that Gaffney was left dangling three years ago by Leinster, despite being on a relative pittance as assistant/backs specialist to Matt Williams. Leinster had taken their eye off Gaffney while in extensive and far more remunerative negotiations with Matt Williams at the time of his tug-of-war with Saracens, whereupon Munster stealthily snapped Gaffney up.

Many Leinster players, not just the backs, were particularly aggrieved and still speak very highly of Gaffney, as do those in Munster.

Perhaps it was in one-on-one relationships with players, when developing their skills, that Gaffney's time in Irish rugby will be best remembered. For example, it is a source of continuing regret that Jeremy Staunton didn't move to Leinster from Munster as an outhalf five years ago and come under the tutelage of Williams and Gaffney.

In part, though, Gaffney's perceived legacy might be because an assistant coach in any team sport will invariably enjoy a softer, more approachable relationship than the head coach. Widely acknowledged as a straight, honest and innately decent Aussie bloke, on becoming head coach at Munster Gaffney would have had to crack the whip more. It also goes with the territory that he'd have had to leave players out of the starting line-ups or squads. The assistant coach doesn't have to do that.

Declan Kidney would have been a tough act to follow, but in his first year Munster pulled off their greatest piece of escapology with that so-called Miracle Match when they beat Gloucester by the minimum requirement of four tries and 27 points.

Munster also rid themselves of a monkey on their backs when they captured the Celtic League by dint of their win in the final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.

Having stormed Welford Road in the quarter-finals, another of their finest hours, there was no shame in losing to eventual European Cup champions Toulouse by one point in an away semi-final.

The expansion of the Celtic League and international demands diluted the challenge of all the provinces in that competition and compelled Gaffney to stiffen the squad with overseas' signings which, in truth, have been a decidedly mixed bag.

Also well regarded for his homework on the opposition, perhaps his finest hour as Munster head coach was the way Munster stunningly went wide with set-piece ball to outflank the Stade Francais defence twice in the opening 10 minutes of their 37-32 quarter-final win last season. Again, there was no shame in losing that unforgettable semi-final to eventual champions Wasps.

There is possibly more to the current coaching scenario in Munster than meets the eye, for there are rumours that Gaffney might have been offered a one-year extension, either as head coach with Michael Bradley as part of the ticket, or that he was going to be invited to re-apply for his own job. This would have been insulting to him, and if Munster and/or the IRFU didn't ideally want Gaffney to stay on, then better to tell him straight up.

Bradley would certainly seem the logical choice to take over the reins at Munster. A former Munster and Ireland captain, he has cut his teeth with Cork Constitution and, for the last two years, impressed at Connacht. He'll have to win over the Munster dressingroom, but then so would anyone else, and although the union's push for promoting indigenous coaches is a worthy one, it can be done too hastily.

A personal preference would have been for Gaffney to stay on at Munster and Bradley to have a third year with Connacht (perhaps grooming Eric Elwood and Dan McFarland to succeed him a while longer also), particularly if they qualify for the European Cup for the first time.

Then again, perhaps he was doing too well at Connacht for the liking of some in 62 Lansdowne Road.

Nonetheless, Bradley, at 42, looks well primed and ready. Certainly, in terms of having coached adult sides, and full-time at that, he looks inestimably better qualified than any other native coach (indeed he brings more experience to the job than, say, Mark McCall had when he took over at Ulster), not to mention high-profile names from abroad such as Zinzan Brooke, who is rumoured to be interested. Surely we've gone beyond those days.

If it is to be Bradley, a key appointment will be his successor at Connacht. Ideally it should be an indigenous coach who would work with Elwood and McFarland, who have been making a good impression in their first season with the Connacht under-21s.

Having bumped into a cluster of indigenous coaches in Gleeson's pub one night while they were in Dublin doing their Level Three coaching courses (Bradley, Brian Walsh, Willie Anderson, Philip Danaher, Brian Hyland, Jeremy Davidson and Niall Malone), it's clear that there's plenty to choose from.

One could add in the names of Geoff Moylan, Stephen McIvor and John McKee, as well as Davidson and Walsh, who is making a very favourable impression at Cork Constitution.

A second Constitution man in a row for Connacht maybe?