BRIDGNORTH Rugby Club have captured the services of a top former international coach. Richard Woods, who was heavily involved with a successful England women’s A team as well as with Wasps, has been appointed as the All Blacks new head coach.
Woods started playing rugby at university and then turned out for local teams in Bedford before moving to London for a teaching career. He started coaching while playing for Wasps and became involved with their junior set-up.
He became mentor to the England women’s RFUW which set up an academy for younger players. Woods progressed to assistant coach with the academy and then became involved in the women’s home and away international matches.
He was promoted to head coach of England women’s A XV which won the Six Nations A championships before being invited to coach the women on their first tour, to South Africa, when they were unbeaten.
A career move to Merseyside and an appointment to a senior position meant that Woods had less time to coach, but he continued to play with local sides, training with the Waterloo club.
Woods has now taken up his Bridgnorth appointment following a move to the Midlands on his promotion to deputy head of Sandwell Academy.
“I am delighted to be involved with an aspirational club with pool of talent of both young and more experienced players, which is a real draw,” he said. “I am looking forward to the challenge of finishing this season on winning and in top the half of the league and building for the future next year and push for honours.
“The club has a real pool of talent from new players to old heads and from what I have seen in training and matches so far there is an opportunity to build from a position of strength.”
Bridgnorth hope to resume their league programme at Wolverhampton tomorrow following last week’s postponement of the home fixture against Aston Old Edwardians because of bad weather.
