Coaches and staff announced for Queensland teams in 2016 Buildcorp National Rugby Championship

Aug 10 • General News, International • 1739 Views • Comments Off on Coaches and staff announced for Queensland teams in 2016 Buildcorp National Rugby Championship

Former Queensland and Wallabies Number 8 Toutai Kefu will return to Ballymore as head coach of Bond University Queensland Country in the 2016 Buildcorp National Rugby Championship (NRC), while defending champions McInnes Wilson Lawyers Brisbane City will be steered by Sunnybank’s Rod Seib.

Kefu, a Queensland centurion and Rugby World Cup winner, retired from playing in 2010 and has spent the past six years coaching Kubota in Japan. He was also appointed head coach of Tonga’s national side in April this year.

He will be assisted in the role by Queensland Under 20s coaches Jason Gilmore (defence) and Brad Thorn (forwards).

“I’m excited to be back at Ballymore and I’m looking forward to the NRC,” Kefu said.

“The Country team has a lot of history. Queensland Country represents a tough breed of individual, uncompromising, relentless, aggressive – so they’re the kind of traits we want to bring out in our team. The identity is already there, so hopefully we can bring that out on the field.

“I think we can definitely win. We’ve got a strong squad and it’s my job to motivate them and get the best out of them.
“I’m looking forward to working with my assistant coaches as well. Brad and Jason have got great experience so I’ll be looking to them for support and advice.”

Seib, who led Sunnybank as head coach for the last five seasons of BLK Queensland Premier Rugby competition, was attack coach for City’s campaigns over the last two years, which yielded two titles and averaged 40 points a game.

Seib will be supported by returning Brisbane City assistant coach Shane Arnold (defence), who was recently appointed GPS head coach for the 2017 season.

They will be joined for the first time by Brothers coach and former Reds prop Anthony Mathison (forwards).

“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the last couple of seasons with City and I’m excited by the opportunity to lead them this year,” Seib said.

“The standards for City have been set over the last two years and everyone has bought into that philosophy of hard work and enjoyment. We’ve got a similar nucleus of players to what we had over the last two years and everyone is excited about the challenge that awaits us.

“The NRC is all about opportunity, for the players and the staff, so we’re going to embrace that.”

Queensland Rugby Union has also confirmed the support staff for both teams, with a combination of Reds professional staff and community club Rugby.

QRU’s Head of List Management and Pathways, Sam Cordingley, said: “Toutai and Rod are both fantastic coaches and we’re excited to have them on board. We believe we’ve struck a good balance within the coaching and support staff for the 2016 NRC season. With this year’s head coaches both coming externally, it was important to make sure they were well resourced with support from Queensland Rugby, while also creating development opportunities for personnel from club Rugby to increase their experience working in a team environment.”

Now entering its third year, the NRC is an exciting domestic Rugby competition featuring eight teams from across the country, including two from Queensland.

It is an attacking brand of Rugby, with six points for a try and only two points for conversions and penalties. This year’s fixtures have also been shifted to family friendly times, with all but one of the regular season games played at either 1:00pm or 3:00pm AEST on Saturday and Sunday.

In a new development for 2016, FOX SPORTS will broadcast two games each weekend on television with the two remaining games available to stream LIVE via foxsports.com.au and FOX SPORTS Now via Apple TV – meaning fans will be able to watch every single game from the Buildcorp National Rugby Championship for the second season in succession.
Tickets and corporate hospitality for Queensland-based NRC games are now available at www.redsrugby.com.au.

Queensland-based Buildcorp National Rugby Championship ticket prices*
Adult Online $15
Concession Online $10
Junior Online $5

Adult Gate $20
Concession Gate $15
Junior Gate $5

Corporate Boxes $400 Inclusive of GST (box of 10, not including food and beverage)
Canadian Club Ballymore Lawn Club ($75 per person, inclusive)
*Eventopia fees apply
McInnes Wilson Lawyers Brisbane City team staff
Rod Seib (Sunnybank) – Head coach
Shane Arnold (GPS) – Assistant coach (defence)
Anthony Mathison (Brothers) – Assistant coach (forwards)
Henry Gilbert (QRU) – Head of physical preparation
Ian Ross (Souths) – Head physiotherapist
Peter Stickler (GPS) – Team doctor
Liam Gooley (QRU) – Team analyst
Michael Grice (QRU) – Team manager

Bond University Queensland Country team staff
Toutai Kefu (Tonga) – Head coach
Jason Gilmore (QRU) – Assistant coach (defence)
Brad Thorn (QRU) – Assistant coach (forwards)
David Ballard (QRU) – Head of physical preparation
Gina Nelson (QRU) – Head physiotherapist
Gary Mitchell (Brothers) – Team doctor
Michael Todd (QRU) – Team analyst
Nico Andrade (QRU) – Team manager