Ewen McKenzie looks on as his resignation is announced © Getty Images

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Ewen McKenzie has resigned as coach of the Wallabies after just 15 months and 21 games in charge. We take a look at the highs and lows of his brief but eventful reign.

The tricky start: August 2013

McKenzie's tenure as national coach couldn't have started in tougher circumstances: a Bledisloe Cup double header. Both were lost but fans of the Wallabies had plenty to be optimistic about after the end to Robbie Deans' reign following the third Lions test. Under McKenzie, the Wallabies immediately looked a more organised unit, with a bit of added steel up front.

Spring tour: two steps forward, one back

Australia arrived in Europe on the back of a tricky Rugby Championship, where they beat the Argentinians twice but lost to the Springboks and All Blacks. Nevertheless, on their European jaunt they produced plenty to smile about, losing only to England at Twickenham and nabbing impressive wins in Dublin and Cardiff. Yet cracks started to show in Dublin as six players were stood down and more warned after a night on the town. The incident was embarrassing but also revealed tensions in the squad as players were accused of "dobbing" on team-mates.

Ben Mowen leaves his mark on the Springboks © Getty Images

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Au revoir, Ben Mowen

In January, McKenzie's skipper Ben Mowen announced he was off to France and spoke openly about his motivations, citing a desire to spend less time on the road and saying that the Wallabies gruelling schedule had caught up with him. Mowen had a point: he'd started every Wallabies game in 2013, playing 15 games across four continents to supplement his pan-continental commitments with the Brumbies. Yet there was a sub-plot here and rumours were rife: many believed Mowen had the right to feel aggrieved that he'd not been offered an ARU contract.

The union was struggling to offer their players enough money to keep them in the country - Matt Giteau, who is just the kind of player they could do with right now, continues to tear it up for Toulon, while Adam Ashley-Cooper is rumoured to be heading to the same club after the World Cup. Expect more to follow.

France downed: life's a breeze

McKenzie's Wallabies made a fine start to 2014 with a three-zip series win over France in June. Their opponents were poor but it was clear that the coach's visions were coming together and his selection pieces were falling into place. He'd lost Mowen (as well as his new skipper Stephen Moore and November vice-captain Quade Cooper, to serious injury) but he had those he trusted: Michael Hooper and Scott Fardy were impressive on the flanks, Ashley-Cooper was dependable as ever behind the scrum and in Israel Folau he had one of the most devastating runners in the game. He was dealt another blow a few weeks after the win, though, as Nick Cummins announced he was off to Japan.

Sydney: so close, yet so far

Wallabies coaches are bound to be judged on their results against their big rivals New Zealand and South Africa. In this respect, McKenzie doesn't come out well with just a solitary win over the Springboks (by a single point in Perth this September) to his name. In six matches, the closest he came to chalking up a win over the All Blacks came in the first game of 2014's Rugby Championship in Sydney, when they drew 12-12. Arguably his team's finest Bledisloe performance came in his final match in charge as they were pipped by a point. In the 10 weeks between those fixtures it went horribly, horribly wrong.

Disaster in Argentina

The on-field nadir of McKenzie's reign came when his side handed Argentina their first ever Rugby Championship win in Mendoza, as a listless display saw them squander a 14-0 lead. In truth, though, the writing had been on the wall and little cracks had widened: Australia had been beaten soundly in South Africa a week earlier, Kurtley Beale had been dropped and the tenor even butchered their anthem before kick-off. The following weeks would reveal quite how deep this malaise was….

Kurtley Beale proved a problematic figure for McKenzie © Getty Images

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Text-gate, Kurtley-gate, Patston-gate….

All of a sudden, the Wallabies were a shambles and the whispers about McKenzie's future began. The ARU had no cash - and there was even talk that they could face insolvency in 2014 - but, less than a year out from a World Cup, the playing and coaching group were in self-destruct mode and it seemed there was another story about their fallouts every single day. It emerged Beale had sent an offensive text message and had an in-flight argument with manager Di Patston. Patston resigned and Beale was suspended amid chaos.

So long, farewell: the surprise departure

The Wallabies looked like they were putting all this behind them with a fine performance against the All Blacks that looked as if it would give a much-need dose of the feel good factor, only Malakai Fekitoa didn't get the memo. The Tongan-born centre crashed the party with that fine last minute try that Colin Slade duly converted. An hour on, though, and the Wallabies had plenty more to bemoan as McKenzie had given his notice to Bill Pulver earlier in the day. Despite all the promise, his was a reign beset by simmering issues - on and off the field - that spiralled out of control and he departs with the lowest win percentage (52%) of any Wallabies coach in the professional era.