The Elite and Community Rugby Departments share responsibility for administration and management of the England U18s programme, the squad having had a successful and unbeaten season under the guidance of Head Coach, Alex Sanderson and Geoff Richards. Alex left us in the summer to return to Saracens and was succeeded by John Fletcher, former Director of Rugby at Newcastle Falcons. John led the U18s on their unbeaten tour of Argentina in July assisted by new National Academy Coach Martin Haag.
We were very sorry to lose Conor O’Shea as Director of the National Academy this summer. Conor took up the National Director’s post at the English
Institute of Sport and we wish him every success. He has left behind a strong Regional Academy structure which underwent a major overhaul under his guidance, with new license agreements recently signed for all 14 Regional Academies. Stuart Lancaster, previously Director of Rugby at Leeds Carnegie and a former Regional Academy Manager himself, has
now taken over the role of Head of Elite Player Development and brings his own range of skills to the programme.
The sports science and sports medicine area has also undergone a radical review this season with a new strategy devised by Roy Headey to take this highly specialised area through to 2012. Heads of technical functions will no longer be assigned as a matter of course to senior team duties which might be, at times, incompatible with the demands of delivering sports science and medicine support services across the wider department in alignment with the new heads of agreement. Simon Kemp and Barney Kenny, England Team Doctor and Physiotherapist respectively, stood down at the end of the season and are now putting their vast knowledge and experience to good use in new roles within the Elite Rugby Department. Mike Bundy has been appointed to the England Team Doctor role, having supported England teams at all levels over a number of years. Mike Snelling, Phil Pask (both physios) and Paul Frawley (masseur) complete the senior medical team.
