ENGLISH PREMIERSHIP STRUGGLERS Bristol announced today that Bruce Reihana will join the club as skills coach.
Reihana will follow Ian Madigan from Bordeaux-Begles to join the English club, who will be under the stewardship of current Connacht head coach Pat Lam next season.
“The addition of Bruce to the coaching set-up is a major coup for us,” Bristol’s acting head coach Mark Tainton told the club website. “Not only is he an excellent coach, he knows the English game and what is required to break down opposition defences here.”
Reihana retired from playing at the end of the 2013-14 season. The 40-year-old joined Bordeaux-Begles as skills in 2015, having played for the French club for three seasons.
“When the opportunity arose to join Pat Lam’s coaching team and to work with the players at Bristol Rugby, it excited me straight away,” Reihana said.
“I’ve always seen Bristol as a team with huge potential and the chance to be part of a new project, to help develop a team and doing my utmost to bring the best out of players is massively appealing.
“I love the game and I love to coach. I like to bring energy and enthusiasm to my coaching, with a real focus on hard work. When Pat outlined how he wanted his Bristol team to play, it sealed the deal.”
Bristol are currently on course to be relegated to English rugby’s second tier for next season. With four games remaining, the club are bottom of the Premiership, nine points adrift of Worcester Warriors.
